BALINESE NAME SYSTEM

Balinese Name System – Everything is in order; everything has its place.

Family names are not used in Bali, but, commonly, a personal name is added.

All Balinese people are named one of just 4 names: Wayan, Made, Nyoman or Ketut. This is applied to both men and women.  Here’s how it works:

Every Balinese child is simply named by his or her order of birth. The first born, boy or girl, is Wayan. The second born is Made (pronounced ma day). The third born is Nyoman. And the fourth born is Ketut.  If a family has more than four children, the cycle repeats itself, and the next ‘Wayan’ may be called Wayan Balik, which loosely translates to ‘another Wayan’.