Hawaiian Word of the Day

Hawaiian Word of the Day: June 16th

Published June 15, 2022 at 11:00 PM HST

Mōʻī means "king, sovereign, monarch." And mōʻī followed the word wahine means "queen." The word mōʻī is of recent origin, and may be used by itself to mean a monarch of either gender.

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Leilani Poliʻahu

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Hawaiian Word of The Day

Hawaiian Word of the Day: June 27th

Leilani Poliʻahu

Pūpū is the name for marine and land shells, such as pūpū o Niʻihau: Niʻihau shells. It is also the Hawaiian word for appetizers, and that is how we most often hear it used.
Hawaiian Word of The Day

Hawaiian Word of the Day: June 24th

Leilani Poliʻahu

We hear the word tūtū used so often, but many of us may not know that kūkū is another perhaps more traditional pronunciation for today's Hawaiian word. It means "granny, grandma, grandpa," or any relative or close friend of your grandparents' generation. You can say kūkū kane for grandfather, or kūkū wahine for grandmother, but kūkū by itself will always suffice.