The Hawaiian Language

Almost everyone here speaks English, so your only problem may be pronouncing place names. You should not have any trouble communicating in Hawaii. Everybody who visits Hawaii will soon hear the words aloha, mahalo, wahine, and kane. If you just arrived, you’re a malahini. Someone who’s been here a long time is a kamaaina.

When you finish a job or your meal, you are pau (over). On Friday, it’s pau hana, work over. You put pupus in your mouth when you go pau hana (that’s Hawaii’s version of hors d’oeuvres.) Pupus are easier to spell – and eat.

Pronunciation

The Hawaiian alphabet contains only 12 letters: the 5 vowels plus 7 consonants (h, k, l, m, n, p, and w). Words seem to overflow with vowels, but pronunciation is not difficult is you remember to pronounce every letter separately. The vowel sounds are a as in "arm,: e as in "end," i as in "machine," o as in "old," and u as in "rude. Consonants have the same sounds as in English except for the w. Some Hawaiians always pronounce it as a v unless it is preceded by an o or u; others do so only when it is the next to last letter in a word. In diphthongs (ei, eu, oi, ou, ai, ae, ao, au), stress the first member (lei).

If you see a glottal stop mark, or hamza, it indicates, in the Polynesian language, that the letter k has been omitted; there is a definite break in sound between the letters it separates.

Common Hawaiian Words

Weekdays La noa

Sunday Lapule

Monday Po’akahi

Tuesday Po’alua

Wednesday Po ‘akolu

Thursday Po ‘aha

Friday Po ‘alima

Saturday Po ‘aono

As you get to know Hawaii, you’ll reach beyond "aloha" and "mahalo" and discover words like da kine, a ubiquitous multipurpose term that can mean "that thing over there," or the "whatchamacallit," or "the very best," as in "when you care enough to send da kine card." Da kine is from Hawaii’s other native tongue: pidgin English.

At a local ball game, fans may shout "Geevum!" (Give ‘em what for). You could be invited to hear an elder "talk story" (relating myths and memories), or to enjoy local treats like "shave ice" (tropical snow cone).

Take the word "broke". It’s immortalized in the most famous pidgin phrase of all- the motto of the 442^nd Infantry Battalion, World Wars II’s fearless band of Japanese-American heroes from Hawaii and California who risked their lives to prove their loyalty: "Go For Broke." Then there’s "wen go broke" (something got busted or torn, or simply stopped).

Pure pidgin speakers these days tend to be older people in remote areas. Visitors to Waikiki will be lucky to hear the real thing at all.

Pidgin Words and Phrases