Hawaiian Word of the Day: September 4th

By Leilani Poliʻahu

Published September 4, 2025 at 12:00 AM HST

Haʻahaʻa means “lowly, humble, unpretentious, modest, and unassuming.” Remember it as a good way to sign off a letter – me haʻahaʻa – with humility.

Hawaiian Word of the Day

Leilani Poliʻahu

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Hawaiian Word of The Day

Hawaiian Word of the Day: September 3rd

Leilani Poliʻahu

Aupuni means “government,” and can be modified to tell what kind of government we are talking about. For example, aupuni peke lala is the federal government, and aupuni koloniala is the colonial government.
Hawaiian Word of The Day

Hawaiian Word of the Day: September 2nd

Leilani Poliʻahu

Since we don’t often use north, south, east, and west in giving directions in Hawaiʻi, hikina might be a new word to you. It means “east.”