What Does Honolulu Mean?

It is not for certain when Honolulu was founded but historians theorize that that city was established around 1100 A.D. The word Honolulu itself means “sheltered harbor”.

 Although Hawaii is the 50th U.S. state, it does in fact have its own language. The Hawaiian language, originated from the Polynesians where most native Hawaiians migrated from. Hawaiian and English are the official languages amongst the islands. In 1839 and 1840 King Kamehameha III ruled the Hawaiian islands and established Hawaiian language within the territories constitution. Over time, for many reasons, this native Hawaiian language began to decline and English became the “official” language within institutions, schools, and related agencies. By the 1950’s the amount of native speakers dropped below 1%. Since this time there has been renaissance of the native roots and people around the islands have began to endorse the survival of this historic language. The Hawaiian language has an alphabet of 13 characters.

A few words and phrases common in Hawaii:

Aloha: love, affection, Hello, Good-bye

Aloha ahiahi: Good evening

Aloha au ia ‘oe: I love you

Haole: foreigner (pidgin slang)

Hau’oli la Hanau: Happy Birthday

Hoku: star

Honu: turtle

Hula: the dance of Hawaii

Kai: sea

Laki: lucky

Lanai: porch/balcony

Leilani: heavenly flower

Mahalo: thank you

Moana: ocean

Nalu: wave, surf

Niu: coconut

Pau: finished

Pupu: snacks/appetizers

Wikiwiki: fast or speedy

You may hear of “pidgin” or “creole language” with is largely used around the islands, this is not the same as the Hawaiian language or an abridged version of English.

Uncategorized

Leave a Comment

We would love to hear from you - your email will never be shared. Required fields are marked *

2 thoughts on “What Does Honolulu Mean?

  1. Aloha,

    Mahalo for making much of the information here available for people who are looking for an answer to a fairly easy answer, “what does Honolulu mean?” Sheltered Harbor, or Peacefull Bay.
    I’m not a scholar or historian, but I don’t think Honolulu would have been described by early Hawaiian people as a “city”. Or to convince the missionaries, who arrived hundreds of years later, that Hawaiians being such an uncivilized people, could manage a city. The information maybe a little incomplete and misleading.