How to Write 峇 (bā) — Meaning “Ba (used in transliterations, especially for Malay/Indonesian names)”

Picture a mountain (山) sitting on top of a box (合 looks like a box with a lid). This mountain-box combination reminds you that 峇 is used for Bali, an island with mountains and cultural traditions.

Keep the top mountain radical 山 narrow and compact. The bottom part 合 should be slightly wider to support it. A common mistake is making the mountain too big, which makes the character unbalanced.

The main difference is structure: 峇 is top-bottom (山 + 合), while 岈 and 岍 are left-right (山 on left, another component on right). Also, 峇 is only used for transliterations, whereas 岈 means a valley and 岍 is a mountain name.

峇 is almost exclusively used in transliterating foreign place names from Malay/Indonesian, such as 峇里岛 (Bali) and 峇冬 (Batang). You will not find it in everyday vocabulary; it appears in travel contexts about Southeast Asian destinations.

Common words containing 峇 include: 峇里岛 (bā lǐ dǎo) — Bali Island; 峇厘 (bā lí) — Bali; 峇冬 (bā dōng) — Batang (a place name).