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The Balinese ( , , ; ) are an Austronesian ethnic group native to the Indonesian island of Bali and the surrounding islands. The Balinese population of 4.2 million (1.7% of Indonesia's population) live mostly on the island of Bali, making up 85% of the island's population. The Balinese are distinctive amongst the ethnic groups of Indonesia for their adherence to Balinese Hinduism rather than Abrahamic religions such as Islam or Christianity.
There are also significant populations on the island of Lombok and in the easternmost regions of Java (e.g. the regency of Banyuwangi), most of them are descendants of Balinese since the Bali Kingdom era who once controlled the region. Some Balinese can also be found in Balinese migrant areas such as Lampung and Sulawesi regions, mainly due to the migration following the eruption of Mount Agung in 1963 as well as the transmigration program enacted by the Indonesian government.
The Balinese stand out within modern-day Indonesia because they continue to follow Balinese Hinduism rather than the Abrahamic religions that predominate elsewhere in the country. This situation emerged in part because the Dutch colonial administration restricted both Islamisation and Christian missionary activity on the island in order to preserve the already present religious traditions, and in part because the Balinese themselves maintained a strong commitment to their inherited cultural and religious practices. Earlier Hindu–Buddhist traditions had long been predominant in the region. The Orientalism colonial policy that sought to protect and codify Balinese customs later became known as Baliseering ().
The culture is noted for its use of the gamelan in music and various traditional events of Balinese society. Each type of music is designated for a specific type of event. For example, music for a piodalan (birthday celebration) is different from music used for a metatah (teeth grinding) ceremony, just as it is for weddings, Ngaben (cremation of the dead ceremony), Melasti (purification ritual), and so forth. The diverse types of gamelan are also specified according to the different types of dance in Bali. According to Walter Spies, the art of dancing is an integral part of Balinese life as well as an endless critical element in a series of ceremonies or for personal interests.
Traditionally, displaying female breasts is not considered immodest. Balinese women can often be seen with bared chests; however, a display of the thigh is considered immodest. In modern Bali, these customs are normally not strictly observed, but visitors to Balinese temples are advised to cover their legs.
In the Balinese Balinese name, a person's rank of birth or caste is reflected in the name. Balinese are generally patrilineal, but in the case where a family only has daughters, they can decide if a daughter is the confirmed heir ( sentana rajeg). She will then have the same status as if she were a son. The marriage proposal will be carried in reverse; she will be considered the husband ( meawak muani) and he the wife ( meawak luh), and the children are considered to be part of their mother's family.
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The vast majority of the Balinese believe in Agama Tirta, the "holy-water religion". It is a part of Hinduism. Traveling Indian priests are said to have introduced the people to the sacred literature of Hinduism and Buddhism centuries ago. The people accepted it and combined it with their pre-Hindu mythologies. The Balinese from before the third wave of immigration, known as the Bali Aga, are mostly not followers of Agama Tirta but retain their animist traditions.
Wet rice agriculture is a mainstay of Balinese food production. This system of agriculture is extremely water-intensive and requires a substantial network of irrigation to be effective as a subsistence strategy in Bali. A system of irrigation networks ( subak) exists to redistribute access to water in Bali. This network of both underground tunnels () and canals diverts water from natural water sources into the wet-rice cultivation fields utilized by Balinese farmers to grow their staple crops.
The system of cooperative water redistribution is tied to religious and cultural practices among the Balinese and represents an economic system based on mutual obligation, and managed by the personnel of the water temples ( Pura Tirta). Religious officials from these water temples exert spiritual and cultural pressure on the participants in this system and ensure its continuation. These water temples are largely located at the loci of the irrigation networks and manage the distribution of water from the mountainous water sources of the island to lowland areas where water is too scarce for the natural cultivation of rice.
There is evidence this system developed as early as the 11th century CE and has been in continuous use since that time. Genetic evidence indicates that this system spread along kinship lines as the original farming villagers of Bali spread from areas where wet-rice farming originated to less climatically favorable areas of the island. The cultural prestige of certain Pura Titra largely correlates to their position within the subak system, with temples located at major water sources having significant cultural influence. Royalty has associated themselves with major temples of this type, to link their prestige with that of the Pura Titra, and have taken part in the operations of water temples as a means of gaining influence in society.
This system of physical infrastructure represents a durable network of belief that encourages its continuation by the people who participate and provides a levelling mechanism where people who would otherwise be incapable of participating in wet-rice agriculture to take part in the same subsistence activities as those who live in regions more naturally supportive of water-intensive crop growth.
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