© 2025 Hawaiʻi Public Radio

Donate

Play Live Radio

Next Up:

0:00

0:00

0:00 0:00

Available On Air Stations

Hawaiian Word of The Day

Hawaiian Word of the Day

Hawaiian Word of the Day: November 5th

By Leilani Poliʻahu

Published November 5, 2025 at 12:00 AM HST

Luahine means old woman. Luahine is most often used by non-Hawaiian speakers as a proper name, as in the great hula dancer ʻIolani Luahine.

Luahine means old woman. Luahine is most often used by non-Hawaiian speakers as a proper name, as in the great hula dancer ʻIolani Luahine.

Hawaiian Word of the Day

Leilani Poliʻahu

See stories by Leilani Poliʻahu

More Episodes

Hawaiian Word of The Day

Hawaiian Word of the Day: November 4th

Leilani Poliʻahu

Kaʻahumanu, a beautiful Hawaiian name, and it means the bird cloak or the favorite cloak. It is the name of the favorite wife of King Kamehameha the Great.
Hawaiian Word of The Day

Hawaiian Word of the Day: November 3rd

Leilani Poliʻahu

While you most often hear Palani as the Hawaiian transliteration of the name Frank or Frances, it also means France or French. We don't have a lot of Palani in Hawaiʻi, but there are many in Tahiti.