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ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi version of Wordle records thousands of users after launching last week

hulihua.net

The viral word guessing game Wordle is now available in more than 100 languages, including Native Hawaiian.

The ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi version of the game, Hulihua, has already seen thousands of users after launching last week, just in time to celebrate Hawaiian language month in February.

As with Wordle, the mission in Hulihua is to guess a simple five-letter word in six tries. Some figure it out in a few minutes. Others take longer. Each day is a new word. Self-proclaimed word nerd Trisha Kehaulani Watson says it's a low-stakes way to test her ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi skills.

"I love it because I love Wordle. I’m great with English. I’m quite terrible in Hawaiian. I came out of that generation where people were very judgmental about how you spoke. This I think just allows us to try to learn in an environment that’s not judgmental," Watson said.

The New York Times has purchased the online word game Wordle has that took off last fall, with people posting their daily scores.
Brandon Bell
/
Getty Images
The New York Times has purchased the online word game Wordle has that took off last fall, with people posting their daily scores.

Even with a command of the ʻōlelo, Native Hawaiian scholar Noelani Arista says she was surprised that playing Hulihua had her reaching for the Hawaiian language dictionary.

"I went into it going, I figured out the Wordle in English — I got this. When I started playing the Hawaiian version. It’s really hard. It's super hard. You have to leave a slot for the ‘okina. You have a choice for the “ō” with the kahakō or a regular “o.” There are so many choices, and you have to fit that into five slots. So, I find ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi Wordle eminently more challenging," Arista told Hawaiʻi Public Radio.

More than 4,000 users have already played Hulihua since it launched last week. The game was created by UH Maui College Professor Keola Donaghy. He’s pioneered technology in support of Hawaiian language learning for decades from Hawaiian keyboards to email platforms, and now this.

"ʻAʻole e noʻonoʻo he wahi kūpono ʻole ia no ka ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi. Inā loaʻa ka puke wale nō, ʻaʻole maikaʻi ke aʻo ʻōlelo ka walaʻau pū me kekahi poʻe. Akā nā mea loaʻa i kēia wā, inā he mea ia e paipai ana i ka poʻe e aʻo i ka ʻōlelo, hoʻoikaika. Maikaʻi."

Donaghy says don’t think ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi has no place in technology. He says books only go so far in helping one understand a new language. But, Donaghy says, if available technology encourages people to learn a language or sharpen their ʻōlelo skills, then that’s a good thing.

To build Hulihua, Donaghy used open-source code adapted by software developer and language revitalization enthusiast Aidan Pine of British Columbia.

"I've heard from people working on development for Northern Sami in the Arctic, like in Norway. People have developed and released ones for Plains Cree here in Canada. I think there’s development in Alaska going on too, probably more and I just donʻt know about it," Pine said.

Pine initially modified code for the viral word game with speakers of the Gitksan language – one of 34 indigenous languages in B.C. He says adapting the code to indigenous languages is fairly easy and quick, but he has words of caution for aspiring programmers.

"Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should. Pause and think — have you been working with this community? Do they know you’re doing this? Are they into it? All of this work is really relational and it’s about building that community," he said.

Over the last nearly 40 years, the ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi community has grown to an estimated 24,000 speakers, according to the U.S. Census. Much of that progress is the result of ongoing fights for recognition and resources.

But Hulihia reminds us, says Arista, to simply enjoy learning.

"Because we are in a state of reclamation or resistance, we forget to play. The pleasure of playing with your language and expressing yourself through language is something we forget."

Kuʻuwehi Hiraishi is a general assignment reporter at Hawaiʻi Public Radio. Her commitment to her Native Hawaiian community and her fluency in ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi has led her to build a de facto ʻōiwi beat at the news station. Send your story ideas to her at khiraishi@hawaiipublicradio.org.
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