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Taken from the Honolulu Advertiser newspaper
on April 25, 27 and 30, 2001.
There are 13 letters in the Hawaiian alphabet
(the five vowels and consonants
h, k, l, m, n, p, w and the glottal stop ' ). Here are some general rules of
thumb
pertaining to the Hawaiian language:
Vowels are pronounced as follows: a as
in ah, such as lava; e as in ay, such as hay;
i as in ee, such as fee; o as in oh, such as low; and u as
oo, such as moon.
All consonants are pronounced as in English
except for w, which is usually pronounced
as v when it follows an i or e. Example: 'Ewa Beach is pronounced as "Eva"
Beach.
Some vowels are dipthongized, forming single
sounds. Examples: ai as in Waikiki, au
as in mauka, ei as in lei, oi as in poi, ou as in kou and ao as in haole.
The glottal stop, or 'okina, is a backwards
apostrophe that keeps similar words from being confused.
Pau, for example, means "finished," while a pa'u is a "skirt
or sarong" worn by women horseback riders.
A macron, or kahako, designates a long vowel.
A macron is marked as a line directly over the vowel.
Long vowels last longer than a regular vowel. If a word contains no macrons,
the accent usually falls
on the next-to-last syllable.
Every Hawaiian syllable ends with a vowel.
Thus every Hawaiian word ends with a vowel. Learning
the Hawaiian language requires some time and patience, but hang in there! Here
are some commonly
used Hawaiian words and phrases to help you get started.
akamai - smart, clever
aloha - love, affection, goodwill
auwe - an expression of dismay
E komo mai - Welcome!
hale - house
hoku - star
ho'olaule'a - party or celebration
ikaika - strong, powerful
'ilio - dog
kahuna - priest, minister, expert
kane - man
keiki - child
kokua - help, assistance
mahalo - Thank you
malahini - visitor
mele - song, chant
ahupua'a - land division
ali'i - ancient Hawaiian royalty, chief, ruler, monarch
haole - anyone of Caucasian ancestry
Hau'oli la hanau - Happy birthday
haupia - Hawaiian pudding made with coconut
heiau - ancient Hawaiian place of worship
holoholo - to go for a walk, ride or other recreational activity
ho'oponopono - to make right or correct a situation
hula - native Hawaiian form of dance
hula'auana - contemporary hula
hula kahiko - traditional hula
kahili - royal cape made from red and yellow feathers
kala - money
kalua - to bake in an underground oven
kama'aina - native born or longtime Hawai'i resident
kanaka - person, individual
kapu - taboo
kolohe - mischievous, naughty, rascal
kumu hula - hula instructor
lau hala - pandanus leaf often used for weaving
luna - foreman, boss, leader
makai - towards the ocean, used in giving directions
mana - spiritual strength, power
mauka - towards the mountains, used in giving directions
Menehune - legendary small people who worked only at night
building fish ponds, roads and temples
mu'umu'u - loose fitting Hawaiian gown, usually with a floral print
nene - Hawaiian goose
pa'u - skirt worn by women horseback riders
'aina - land, earth
anuenue - rainbow
halau - hula troupe
hana hou - do again, encore
hapai - pregnant
honu - turtle
kupuna - grandparent
ku'uipo - sweetheart
limu - seaweed
lolo - crazy, feeble minded
lua - toilet
lu'au - native Hawaiian feast
malo - loincloth
'ohana - family
'okole - rear end
'ono - delicious
'opu - stomach
pali - cliff, precipice
paniolo - cowboy
pau - finished, done
pau hana - after work
popoki - cat
puka - hole
pupu - hors d'oeuvre, appetizer
tutu - grandmother
wahine - woman
Kilika - Chris
Kiwi - Steve
Kimo - Tim
Likeke - Richard
Palaika - Blake
Mikala - Michael
Steve (Kiwi) would be pronounced as Keev,
Hanauma (as in Hanauma Bay)
is pronounced Hahnah oo ma, Tim (Kimo) is pronounced as Keemo. I even asked
a Hawaiian man who drove me to and from my hotel and the helicopter tour how
to
say these. He even told me that Waikiki means "water spring", and
he said that
Waikiki has some of the best drinking water anywhere.
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