A Passionate View on All Things Bali

Balinese names are both a simple and complex affair. The names Wayan and Made are very common. The following lists the Balinese conventions adhered to for names as determined by birth order:

The 5^th born begins the cycle over again. Names also depend on caste. The castes are Brahmana, Ksatria, Wesia, Sudra. Something like 95% of the Balinese people belong to the Sudra class. To indicate the Sudra class for instance the name is prefixed with an ‘I’ for males and ‘Ni’ for females.

Here is a humorous comment on Balinese names from Why Go Bali: “I remember calling my friend Putu at the restaurant and chatting with someone for a couple of minutes, both agreeing it was nice to meet each other…..before realising it was a different Putu. I’m thinking of handing out # cards to any more Made’s I meet….we’re up to about 5 right now and when someone says ‘Made called for you’ I really don’t know who they’re talking about.

The advantage to this system is that if you forget someone’s name you have a shot at guessing it.”

This is but the tip of the iceberg but indicates the multiplicity of certain names in Bali. Not only are birth order and caste relevant, there are ‘teknonyms’ indicating descent, and also clans and kinship ‘dadias’. A more complete description of names and naming in Bali will follow as we explore the culture of Bali in more detail. You can find more information here.