HWOTD

Oʻahu is the name of the third largest island in the Hawaiian archipelago. Although it is often disputed, many say it means “the gathering place.” The main thing is to pronounce it correctly.

ʻOno is another of those very frequently used Hawaiian word understood by most people, even those who do not speak the language. ʻOno means delicious. Be sure to start it with that glottal stop, because ono without the glottal stop, is the popular and tasty fish known in English as the wahoo.

Even people who do not speak Hawaiian often use the word huhū. Huhū means angry, offended, indignant, mad, or scolding.

Makaʻu means fear, frightened, afraid, cowardly, timid, unsafe, or dangerous. Makaʻu ʻoia aʻu – “he is afraid of me,” or mai makaʻu – “donʻt fear.”

Hale is a word we all use in Hawaiʻi whether we speak Hawaiian or not. And hale, meaning house or building, is our Hawaiian Word of the Day. There are many kinds of hale from the hale ʻaina, or restaurant, to the hale pule, or church.

Kahakai means beach, sea shore, sea coast, seaside, or strand. Ke kahakai o waikīkī is Waikīkī Beach, but it works just as well as a generic term: e helekako i kahakai – let's go to the beach.

Hema means left or left side. When you watch a marching group pass by, you will often hear, “hema, hema, hema, ʻākau hema,” or “left, left, left, right, left.” It also means “south,” as in Kona hema – south Kona.

Ala, meaning path or way, is used in so many of our street names, that is pretty well known, and most people know that it is a redundancy to say “Ala Wai Boulevard” or “Ala Moana Boulevard.” Our Hawaiian Word of the Day is alanui, the natural extension of ala. It means a big path, or a big way, a highway or a freeway.

Pukīkī is the Hawaiian word for the English word “Portuguese” – a group of people who arrived here by the thousands in the late 1800s.

ʻŪala is the Hawaiian name for the sweet potato. Did you know that this delicious and popular Hawaiian staple came from South America?

Laiki is how we say rice in Hawaiian. And since we who live in the Islands eat so much of it, you should know how to say it in Hawaiian. Like so many of our newer Hawaiian words, it was borrowed from the English language.

Poʻe means people, persons, even an entire population. The Hawaiian people are called kapoʻe Hawaiʻi. Poʻe can also be used as a plural marker when talking about people, as in kaʻu poʻe keiki – my children.

Inoa means name. Koʻo inoa means “my name,” kō inoa means “your name.” So the next time you hear someone ask, “O wai kō inoa?” Just tell them what your name is.

Today's Hawaiian Word of the Day is another beautiful place name: Kōkeʻe. It means "to bend" or "to wind." We all know it as the name of the beautiful state park and area on Kauaʻi.

Pekelala is another Hawaiian word borrowed from English, and it means federal. If you listen to the news of the day discussed in Hawaiian, you often hear pekelala, because so much of what is in the news relates to the U.S. federal government.

Pō means: night, darkness, obscurity, the realm of the gods. The Hawaiian day begins at nightfall, so instead of using the word for the days of the week, as is done in English, we use pō for nights, and then modify it to make the nights of the week. For example pō akihi or pō alua.

Pīkake is our name for the fragrant jasmine flower, and it is also the Hawaiian word for peacock.

Our Hawaiian Word of the Day is another frequently mispronounced Hawaiian place name: Keʻeaumoku. That well-driven street was probably named for a governor of Maui who bore the same name as his father, and ally, and father-in-law of Kamehameha the First.

Koko means blood. It took on a special meaning when blood quantum was used by the U.S. government as a way to decide which Hawaiians would receive benefits and which ones would not.

Waikīkī means “spouting water” and was reportedly named for the swamps later drained to from the Ala Wai canal.

Lānaʻi is another major island name that is often mispronounced. People tend to confuse it with the word for a porch or a stiff back chair or a variety of sweet potato.

Molokaʻi is often called the “friendly island.” And although it's well known in song and chant, it is not known for sure what the name means.

ʻĀkau means "north" when used as a direction. But is more commonly used to mean "right," as opposed to left.

We hope you find this Hawaiian Word of the Day interesting. If you do, the word to describe your feelings is hoihoi. It means "pleasure, interest, happiness, joy, delight, enjoyment," and  much more.

Mele means "song, anthem, or chant of any kind; a poem; or to sing or to chant." Na mele o Hawaiʻi nei means “the songs of Hawaiʻi.”

One of the best known Hawaiian words is hula, meaning to dance. Hula is a very generic term for dance. There are many specific types of hula. Don't confuse hula with hulahula, the word you learned for ballroom dancing, and don't say, "hula dancing" – that's redundant.

The muʻumuʻu is often called the “Mother Hubbard” or loose-fitting dress. Don't confuse it with mumu which is a thud-like sound. The dress is a muʻumuʻu.

Hapa is most often used in English conversation to describe something that is mixed or part of something. And although, it comes from the English word “half,” it means portion or part. We hear hapa used in hapa Hawaiʻi for part Hawaiian, or hapa haole for part foreign.

Manaʻo means "to think, thought, idea, belief, meaning, opinion, suggestion." We often talk about our manaʻo, and we often share our manaʻo with our friends.

Another beautiful Hawaiian name that is so often mispronounced is Kalanianaʻole and it means “the chief without measure.” It is a name given to so many prominent landmarks and the one that seems to give a lot of trouble to people in the broadcast media.