Pidgin: 'Eh Fo'Real, Brah
If you venture beyond the tourist areas, you might hear another local tongue: pidgin English, a conglomeration of slang and words from the Hawaiian language. "Broke da mouth" (tastes really good) is the favorite pidgin phrase and one you might hear; "'Eh fo'real, brah" means "It's true, brother." You could be invited to hear an elder "talk story" (relating myths and memories). But because pidgin is really the province of the locals, your visit to Hawaii is likely to pass without your hearing much pidgin at all.
Do You Have to Speak Hawaiian in Hawaii?
Almost everyone here speaks English. But many folks in Hawaii now speak Hawaiian as well. All visitors will hear the words aloha and mahalo (thank you). If you've just arrived, you're a malihini. Someone who's been here a long time is a kamaaina. When you finish a job or your meal, you are pau (finished). On Friday, it's pau hana, work finished. You eat pupu (Hawaii's version of hors d'oeuvres) when you go pau hana.
The Hawaiian alphabet, created by the New England missionaries, has only 13 letters: the five regular vowels (a, e, i, o, and u) and seven consonants (h, k, l, m, n, p, and w), plus a glottal stop known as an 'okina.
The vowels are pronounced in the Roman fashion: that is, ah, ay, ee, oh, and oo (as in "too") -- not ay, ee, eye, oh, and you, as in English. For example, huhu is pronounced who-who. Most vowels are sounded separately, though some are pronounced together, as in Kalakaua: Kah-lah-cow-ah.
Below are some basic Hawaiian words that you'll often hear in Hawaii and see throughout this guide. For a more complete list of Hawaiian words, go to www.hisurf.com/hawaiian/dictionary.html.
Alii -- Hawaiian royalty
aloha -- greeting or farewell
halau -- school
hale -- house or building
heiau -- Hawaiian temple or place of worship
kahuna -- priest or expert
kamaaina -- old-timer
kapa -- tapa, bark cloth
kapu -- taboo, forbidden
keiki -- child
kupuna -- respected elder
lanai -- porch or veranda
lomilomi -- massage
mahalo -- thank you
makai -- direction, toward the sea
mana -- spirit power
mauka -- direction, toward the mountains
muumuu -- loose-fitting gown or dress
ono -- delicious
pali -- cliff
paniolo -- Hawaiian cowboy(s)
wiki -- quick
Note: This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before planning your trip.