Balinese name
Encyclopedia
The Balinese name is a naming system used by the Balinese people
of Bali
, Indonesia
and the Western parts of neighboring Lombok
, Indonesia
. Since most Balinese are Hindus
, most names are Hindi
or Sanskrit
, while others still use native Balinese one. Regardless of being male or female, each person receives one of four names based on birth order
. Though there are significant variations in the four names of Balinese people,some due to caste
membership, and others due to regional customs and variations in the Balinese language between the North and the South of the island, there are four names in Balinese culture that are repeated frequently. The firstborn is "Wokalayan" (or Yan, for short), second is "Made," third is "Nyoman" or Komang (Man or Mang for short), and fourth is "Ketut" (often elided to Tut). (The vowels are pronounced vowels similarly as in Spanish or Italian). Balinese names are rendered into Roman script by the Romanization of the Indonesian language
. The spelling to pronunciation relationship is said to be "perfect" because the spelling of words was revised significantly in the 70's and/or 80's (and even more recently).
s.
It is possible that the naming system of the peasant farmers of Bali precedes the idea of caste. These people are largely a mix of 'native' (early proto Polynesian type) Balinese and very early Hindu-Buddhist missionaries and their followers, who did not arrive in Bali with successive waves of Javanese nobles and military rulers. They form the caste level that would be called sudra in India, that is, people outside the triwarna, or three colors (Wesya, overseers and minor aristocracy, Ksatria, nobles, kings and warriors and Bhramana, the highest caste comprising teachers, priests, writers and philosophers). This "farmer caste" comprises the vast freemasonry of the Balinese villages, as set out above, this caste uses names to denote birth position. It is an ingenious way for peasant farmers to keep track of inheritance questions, Wayan, for first born, Made for second, Nyoman for third and Ketut for fourth. The three castes, use a caste identifier as the first part of a name:
Gusti literally means "leader". As members of this caste have the same preoccupation as wealthy peasants with inheritance of lands, and in any case were often families promoted from the farmer caste, they often use positional names for the birth order of their children. Sometimes they borrow the whole order of the farmer caste names, so you may find a name like I Gusti Ketut Rajendra, male of the wesya caste, fourth born, whose personal name is Rajendra)
. The word Agung means "great", or "prominent". The word Tjokorda is a conjunction of the Sanskrit words Tjoka and Dewa. It literally means the foot of the Gods, and is awarded to the highest members of the aristocracy. A typical name might be Anak Agung Rai, meaning a Ksatrya,whose personal name means "The Great One". It is more difficult to differentiate sexes among the k'satrya people, though personal names often tell, like Putra, or Prince, for a boy, and Putri, or Princess, for a girl.
A typical name might be Ida Ayu Ngurah, meaning "Brahman woman, Beautiful highness whose personal name is Ngurah," (in English, gift from heaven).
Unlike Javanese names, Balinese names of Sanskrit origin do not change some of the letter 'a's into 'o's (such as the Javanese 'Susilo', from 'Susila').
Balinese people
The Balinese population of 3.0 million live mostly on the island of Bali, making up 89% of the island's population. There are also significant populations on the island of Lombok, and in the eastern-most regions of Java The Balinese population of 3.0 million (1.5% of Indonesia's population) live...
of Bali
Bali
Bali is an Indonesian island located in the westernmost end of the Lesser Sunda Islands, lying between Java to the west and Lombok to the east...
, Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
and the Western parts of neighboring Lombok
Lombok
Lombok is an island in West Nusa Tenggara province, Indonesia. It forms part of the chain of the Lesser Sunda Islands, with the Lombok Strait separating it from Bali to the west and the Alas Strait between it and Sumbawa to the east...
, Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
. Since most Balinese are Hindus
Hinduism
Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...
, most names are Hindi
Hindi
Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...
or Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
, while others still use native Balinese one. Regardless of being male or female, each person receives one of four names based on birth order
Birth order
Birth order is defined as a person's rank by age among his or her siblings. Birth order is often believed to have a profound and lasting effect on psychological development...
. Though there are significant variations in the four names of Balinese people,some due to caste
Caste
Caste is an elaborate and complex social system that combines elements of endogamy, occupation, culture, social class, tribal affiliation and political power. It should not be confused with race or social class, e.g. members of different castes in one society may belong to the same race, as in India...
membership, and others due to regional customs and variations in the Balinese language between the North and the South of the island, there are four names in Balinese culture that are repeated frequently. The firstborn is "Wokalayan" (or Yan, for short), second is "Made," third is "Nyoman" or Komang (Man or Mang for short), and fourth is "Ketut" (often elided to Tut). (The vowels are pronounced vowels similarly as in Spanish or Italian). Balinese names are rendered into Roman script by the Romanization of the Indonesian language
Indonesian language
Indonesian is the official language of Indonesia. Indonesian is a normative form of the Riau Islands dialect of Malay, an Austronesian language which has been used as a lingua franca in the Indonesian archipelago for centuries....
. The spelling to pronunciation relationship is said to be "perfect" because the spelling of words was revised significantly in the 70's and/or 80's (and even more recently).
Birth order
The first born is Wayan, and if there is a fifth child, he/she is often called Wayan Balik (or Wayan "again"). Balinese children/people are given other names, including a new "name" after death. Generally, everyone does use these birth order names to refer to each other, and to call each other constantly throughout the day. "Given" names may be chosen due to, for example, the influence of popular culture or politics. Like some other Indonesian cultures, Balinese do not use family nameFamily name
A family name is a type of surname and part of a person's name indicating the family to which the person belongs. The use of family names is widespread in cultures around the world...
s.
- First born names : Wayan, Putu, Gede, Ni Luh(female only)
- Second born names : Made, Kadek, Nengah
- Third born names : Nyoman, Komang
- Fourth born names : Ketut
Caste
The naming system is a method to instantly recognise caste. Caste, unlike in India, is relatively unimportant to the Balinese and the idea of it probably flowed into Balinese culture as close links with Hindu-Buddhist Java evolved. The real inclusion of the caste notion probably succeeds Airlangga, a half Balinese who became king of Daha in Java, about 1000 AD.It is possible that the naming system of the peasant farmers of Bali precedes the idea of caste. These people are largely a mix of 'native' (early proto Polynesian type) Balinese and very early Hindu-Buddhist missionaries and their followers, who did not arrive in Bali with successive waves of Javanese nobles and military rulers. They form the caste level that would be called sudra in India, that is, people outside the triwarna, or three colors (Wesya, overseers and minor aristocracy, Ksatria, nobles, kings and warriors and Bhramana, the highest caste comprising teachers, priests, writers and philosophers). This "farmer caste" comprises the vast freemasonry of the Balinese villages, as set out above, this caste uses names to denote birth position. It is an ingenious way for peasant farmers to keep track of inheritance questions, Wayan, for first born, Made for second, Nyoman for third and Ketut for fourth. The three castes, use a caste identifier as the first part of a name:
Sudra Caste
There's no special names for people from Sudra caste. They usually only use the names which denotes birth position. Traditionally they will only add word I for male and Ni for female in front of their names.Wesya caste
Names for Wesya caste :- I Gusti Ngurah (male), I Gusti Ayu (female)
- I Dewa (male), I Dewa Ayu (female)
- Desak (male and female)
Gusti literally means "leader". As members of this caste have the same preoccupation as wealthy peasants with inheritance of lands, and in any case were often families promoted from the farmer caste, they often use positional names for the birth order of their children. Sometimes they borrow the whole order of the farmer caste names, so you may find a name like I Gusti Ketut Rajendra, male of the wesya caste, fourth born, whose personal name is Rajendra)
K'satria caste
Names for K'satria caste :- Anak Agung (male), Anak Agung Ayu or Anak Agung Istri (female)
- Tjokorda, sometimes abbreviated as Tjok (male), Tjokorda Istri (male)
. The word Agung means "great", or "prominent". The word Tjokorda is a conjunction of the Sanskrit words Tjoka and Dewa. It literally means the foot of the Gods, and is awarded to the highest members of the aristocracy. A typical name might be Anak Agung Rai, meaning a Ksatrya,whose personal name means "The Great One". It is more difficult to differentiate sexes among the k'satrya people, though personal names often tell, like Putra, or Prince, for a boy, and Putri, or Princess, for a girl.
Brahmana caste
Names for Brahmana caste :- Ida Bagus (male), Ida Ayu (female)
A typical name might be Ida Ayu Ngurah, meaning "Brahman woman, Beautiful highness whose personal name is Ngurah," (in English, gift from heaven).
- Inter-caste marriage are occurred in these days. Those who married someone from higher caste will adopt name Jero (literally meaning 'come in') in front of their name.
Gender
The System also differentiates (for the same reasons of inheritance rights, but perhaps also to reduce confusion) between males and females, I , being added as a prefix for males, and Ni . So typical names might look like I Wayan Pedjeng, or Ni Ketut Sulastri. These mean, respectively, 'first born male who's personal name is Pedjeng' (in English, moon), and 'fourth born female whose personal name is Sulastri' (in English, fine light).Unlike Javanese names, Balinese names of Sanskrit origin do not change some of the letter 'a's into 'o's (such as the Javanese 'Susilo', from 'Susila').