A testifier who called ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi a "dead language" at a recent Honolulu City Council meeting was met with rebuke from Hawaiian council members.
Her comment sparked outrage on social media. Hawaiian language speakers say more awareness should be raised about the work done to revitalize the language in the past nearly 40 years.
ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi and English are the official languages of the state.
The woman, whose display name was A. Kai Lorinc, asked for translation from other testifiers who spoke Hawaiian while commenting on bills. Lorinc couldn't be reached for comment.
"They originally were speaking in a language that was not English, and it is not fair to the participants of the meeting to not know what's being said," she said online during last week's meeting. "I'm not sure what language it was. I'm assuming that it was Hawaiian, and that is a dead language, so it would not work on a translator."
Councilmembers Tommy Waters, Esther Kiaʻāina, and Andria Tupola immediately corrected Lorinc. Tupola even spoke ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi to prove a point.
"It felt hurtful," Tupola told HPR. "Maybe she didn't know. Maybe she did. I know some people are unaware. Maybe they don't run in Native Hawaiian circles. But it's hard to hear that with so many people have invested their lives in revitalizing the culture."
ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi became an official language of the state in 1978. That was during the Hawaiian Renaissance, which sparked the revitalization of the Hawaiian language and identity
The language nearly died after being banned from school instruction in 1896 — three years after the overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom.
According to the University of Hawaiʻi Institute of Hawaiian Language Research Translation, the Hawaiian language has grown to more than 20,000 speakers over nearly 40 years.
Hawaiian-language immersion schools, also known as kaiapuni schools, have increased student enrollment since their creation in the 1980s. Hawaiʻi has 22 non-charter kaiapuni with an enrollment of 2,300, according to the Hawaiʻi Department of Education.
‘Aha Pūnana Leo, a group of Hawaiian-language preschools, has 13 schools statewide.
Pililuaikekaiohilo Keala, an assistant professor at the College of Education at the University of Hawaiʻi, trains kaiapuni teachers for K-12 schools. She said Lorinc's comment diminishes the revitalization efforts of Hawaiian language speakers.
Keala underscored the need for more kaiapuni teachers and facilities to accommodate students.
"To say that it's dead is so far from the truth… With the amount of use that we see in the media and in the community today, it seems very ignorant or blatantly trying to start something and coming at this from a non-community point of view," she said.
Councilmember Tupola said she invested time in learning ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi. She returned to Hawaiʻi from college in Utah and was interested in ensuring her children were fluent. She said she and her children only speak Hawaiian at home.
Tupola said her daughter saw Lorinc's comment on social media and was baffled.
"I don't even know if she realized this is why I put you guys in these things (Hawaiian immersion schools) so that you can defend yourself," Tupola said. "So, you can say I'm a Native Hawaiian. Not just of that ethnicity, but I speak it."
Tupola said it would be helpful to have a Honolulu cultural center similar to the Polynesian Cultural Center — but primarily focused on Hawaiian culture.
The Hawaiian language has hit milestones in revitalization efforts. It's become normalized in some local government agencies. The state Senate translates its order of day into English and Hawaiian. The Hawaiʻi Tourism Authority also publishes its agenda in Hawaiian and English. The bailiff always starts the Hawaiʻi Supreme Court session in ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi.
Jacob Aki is a Hawaiian language speaker, and his son attends a Hawaiian language school. Aki said there needs to be more awareness of the past 40 years of work to keep the language alive.
"We need to ensure that we are doing everything we can to let our children know that speaking Hawaiian is OK and that using our language in government, in legislative hearings, at the store, in the doctor's office, is OK. Our language is not dead. In actuality, it is a language that is thriving."
