Pekelala is another Hawaiian word borrowed from English, and it means federal. If you listen to the news of the day discussed in Hawaiian, you often hear pekelala, because so much of what is in the news relates to the U.S. federal government.

Pō means: night, darkness, obscurity, the realm of the gods. The Hawaiian day begins at nightfall, so instead of using the word for the days of the week, as is done in English, we use pō for nights, and then modify it to make the nights of the week. For example Pōʻakahi or Pōʻalua.

Pīkake is our name for the fragrant jasmine flower, and it is also the Hawaiian word for "peacock."

Koʻolau means windward — a very appropriate name for a mountain range that runs up the windward side of the island of Oʻahu. It can be used as an adjective too, to describe something that is on the windward side.

Koko means blood. It took on a special meaning when blood quantum was used by the U.S. government as a way to decide which Hawaiians would receive benefits and which ones would not.

Waikīkī means “spouting water” and was reportedly named for the swamps later drained to from the Ala Wai canal.

Lānaʻi is another major island name that is often mispronounced. People tend to confuse it with the word for a porch or a stiff back chair or a variety of sweet potato.

Molokaʻi is often called the “friendly island.” And although it's well known in song and chant, it is not known for sure what the name means.

Another of those beautiful Oʻahu Hawaiian place names so often mispronounced is Mōʻiliʻili, a residential area near Mānoa. It means pebble lizard.

We hope you find this Hawaiian Word of the Day interesting. If you do, the word to describe your feelings is hoihoi. It means "pleasure, interest, happiness, joy, delight, enjoyment," and much more.