In ancient times the culture and traditions of the people of Hawai'i were transmitted orally from generation to generation. American missionaries arrived in 1820 and soon formulated a written Hawaiian language based on the sounds they heard. Hawaiians quickly adopted written literacy following the introduction of printed Bibles, grammars and other textbooks. Hawaiian was the primary language of all islanders until the late nineteenth century. In 1893, the last reigning Hawaiian monarch, Queen Lili'uokalani, was overthrown by American forces. The government of the Republic of Hawai'i, on June 8, 1896, in Section 30 of the School Laws of 1896, banned the use of the Hawaiian language in all schools. The State Constitution of Hawai'i in 1978 established Hawaiian and English as the official languages of the State. In 1986, the ban on the use of the Hawaiian language for instructional purposes was finally lifted. Today, we hear Hawaiian spoken with increasing frequency in homes and markets as the language continues to thrive.

In its written form, the language uses an alphabet of thirteen letters: five vowels (a, e, i, o, u) and eight consonants (h, k, l, m, n, p, w) including the ̣kina or glottal stop. The “sound” of the ̣kina is similar to the vocal break made with pronouncing "oh-oh." Omission of the ̣kina, as with the omission of any other letter, changes the meaning of the word. The kahako, or macron, is a diacritical mark employed primarily as an aid to proper pronunciation; it indicates a stressed and elongated vowel.

Hawaiian Language at This Site

Because existing fonts display Hawaiian language diacritical marks inconsistently, we have omitted the use of the kahako in Hawaiian words in our site text. We retain the ̣kina and follow Pukui and Elbert's Hawaiian Dictionary as our spelling guide.

Glossary

Ahupua'a — land division usually extending from the uplands to the sea, its boundary marked by a cairn (ahu) of stones topped by an image of a pig (pua'a), or an actual pig or other payment laid there as tax paid to the chief.

Awa — milkfish; also refers to a port, harbor, cove or channel.

Ko'a — fishing grounds; also fishing shrine, often built of piles of coral or stone along the shore or beside ponds or streams.

Kolohe — mischievous, naughty, prankster.

O'io — ladyfish, bonefish.

Place Names

'Akahipu'u — literally, one hill. Hill near Hu'ehu'e. In legend, three menehune made a failed attempt to remove the hilltop and relocate it to the flattened top of Kuili hill.

Hawai'i — refers today to the largest island in the Hawaiian islands and also to the entire chain. Variations of this name (Havaiki in New Zealand, 'Avaiki in the Cook Islands, Savai'i in Samoa) occur throughout Polynesia. It refers to the homeland or the underworld where the dead go.

Hualalai — the mountain on the west side of Hawai'i island. In mythology, Hualalai was the wife of Hawai'iloa, the mariner who sailed to the Hawaiian islands from the marquesas. Hualalai and Hawai'iloa's offspring were the districts and people of Hawai'i island; their last child was the district of Hamakua. When she died, Hualalai was buried on the mountain that now bears her name.

Hu'ehu'e — village and ranch. The last flow from Hualalai erupted in 1801 below the ranch and flowed to the sea. Hawaiians believe Pele started the flow because she wanted fish from the coast and breadfruit from the uplands of Hu'ehu'e.

Kuki'o — standing ponds or pools of water

Pa'aiea — large fishpond which extended from Kaelehuluhulu to Wawaloli in Kekaha. The pond was destroyed by the 1801 Hualalai eruption which began at Hu'ehu'e. The flow was said to embody Pele's wrath at the fishpond overseer who refused to share his fish with her.