07/29/2026
Chris Meyer Aloha everyone. Since many people have asked about the Hawaiian words we use on this page, we wanted to share a simple glossary. We are still learning too, and we welcome respectful guidance from fluent ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi speakers, kūpuna, kumu, and community members.
ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi: Hawaiian language
Aloha: Love, compassion, greeting, presence, breath of life
Aloha ʻāina: Love of the land; patriotism rooted in care for ʻāina
ʻĀina: Land; that which feeds and sustains us
Pono: Righteousness, balance, moral correctness, doing what is right
Kuleana: Responsibility, privilege, duty, what one is entrusted to care for
Mālama: To care for, protect, preserve, tend
Mālama ʻāina: To care for and protect the land
Moʻolelo: Story, history, tradition, account
Manaʻo: Thought, opinion, idea, belief, reflection
ʻIke: Knowledge, understanding, insight
Naʻau: Gut, inner knowing, heart-mind, deep feeling
P**e: Prayer
Mana: Spiritual power, authority, sacred energy
Lāhui: Nation, people, collective community
Ea: Life, breath, sovereignty, rising, self-determination
Keiki: Child or children
Moʻopuna: Grandchild, descendant
ʻOhana: Family, extended family, connected community
Kūpuna: Elders, ancestors, grandparents
Kumu: Teacher, source, foundation
Kanaka: Person, human being
Kanaka Maoli: Native Hawaiian person; Indigenous Hawaiian
Kānaka: People, humans, Native Hawaiian people depending on context
Kiaʻi: Guardian, protector, one who watches over
Nā Pūʻali Kiaʻi: The guardian forces or protective groups
Aupuni: Government, nation, kingdom, realm
Ke Aupuni Hawaiʻi: The Hawaiian government/Kingdom/Nation, depending on context
Aliʻi: Chief, chiefly class, royalty
Makaʻāinana: Common people, people of the land
Ahupuaʻa: Traditional land division running from mountain to sea
Moku: District, island, region
Wai: Fresh water
Kai: Sea, ocean water
Mauna: Mountain
Kalo: Taro, sacred elder sibling in Hawaiian genealogy
Pueo: Hawaiian owl, often honored by some ʻohana as ʻaumākua
ʻAumākua: Ancestral guardian or family protector
Akua: God, deity, divine being
Kupua: Supernatural being, culture hero, shapeshifter, extraordinary figure
Heiau: Sacred temple or place of worship
Kapu: Sacred restriction, prohibition, protected status
Iwi kūpuna: Ancestral bones/remains
Wahi pana: Sacred, storied, or legendary place
Oli: Chant
Mele: Song, chant, poem
Hula: Hawaiian dance and sacred storytelling practice
Moʻokūʻauhau: Genealogy
Lā Hoʻihoʻi Ea: Restoration Day, remembering the restoration of Hawaiian Kingdom sovereignty in 1843
Lā Kūʻokoʻa: Hawaiian Independence Day, recognizing international acknowledgment of Hawaiian independence in 1843
Mahalo: Thank you, gratitude
Mahalo nui: Thank you very much
Me ke aloha pumehana: With warm aloha
Honi honi: Kisses, affection, loving greeting
E ola: May it live
E ola mau: May it live forever
E ola mau ka lāhui: May the nation/people live on forever
Language carries memory. When we use ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi, we do our best to use it with respect, humility, and care. If we make mistakes, we welcome correction because this page is about learning together. Every word is part of the moʻolelo. Every correction helps us move closer to pono.