o = oh (Like “Live in Hawaii! What an oh-portunity!”).i = ee (Like “Wow an igloo in Hawaii, that’s odd!”).e = eh (Like “eh, I don’t really care”).If you’re familiar with Spanish and Spanish pronunciation, you pronounce vowels the same way in Hawaiian. There are 13 letters in the Hawaiian alphabet: A, E, I, O, U, H, K, L, M, N, P, W. Hawaiian pidgin has some key differences in pronunciation when compared with Standard American English (SAE) and knowing the difference will make it easier to understand and to speak when you’re in Hawaii. There are some 600,000 or so people who speak Hawaiian pidgin words and phrases today and roughly 400,000 use it as a second language. But it can be helpful - and fun, frankly! - to be familiar with these words and expressions when you encounter them. Hawaiian pidgin words and phrases are also sometimes used in local advertisements.Īs a newcomer to Hawaii, you won’t be expected to speak Pidgin to locals (in fact, any attempt to do so will probably be met with strange looks or laughter!). Today, you can hear Pidgin being spoken among some locals in informal situations.
When the Okinawans, Puerto Ricans, Koreans, and Filipinos started immigrating to Hawaii around 1900, bits of their distinct languages were also thrown into the mix. To be able to communicate with each other and the English-speaking plantation owners, a common language developed that borrowed words, phrases, intonations, and grammatical structures from these 4 different languages. First came the Chinese, Japanese, and Portuguese in the mid-1800s. Hawaiian Pidgin has evolved from the old plantation days when immigrants came from different countries to work in Hawaii’s sugar cane fields. In this post, we’ll go highlight the most useful Hawaiian Pidgin words and phrases so when you arrive you’re fully prepared to meet some kanaka’s (kah-NAH-kah) or Hawaiian People and jump right into Hawaiian culture! Background to Hawaii Pidgin Slang Phrases Hawaiian Pidgin Slang: The Best Guide to Hawaiian Slang Phrases
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