Her name is California, not Baja

Call her Baja California, or just California, but never just Baja.

Would you call New York City just “New”?

Would you call South Africa just “South”?

Baja is an adjective that means “Lower”.

But then I get confused with the California I know!

Valid point. For clarification you can use:

But never just “Baja”.

You’re just naming her after her northern neighbor anyway

It’s a common misconception. Baja California got named California before the United States was a country!

What does California mean anyway?

A widespread myth is that Calfornia is short for Calida Fornax (Hot oven in latin, alluring to the scorching heat of the region). But actually, it was named after a fictional island from a popular spanish novel.

Imagine if today we discovered a new island and named it Westeros, or Middle Earth! (Would you also call it just “Middle”, hmm?)