Hawaiian language

Lore & Background

The Hawaiian language takes its name from the largest island, Hawaii, first written in English in 1778 by British explorer James Cook as 'Owhyhee' or 'Owhyee.' The initial 'O' reflects the Hawaiian copula form ʻo used before proper nouns. American missionaries initially referred to it as the 'Owhihe Language' or 'Owhyhee language' before adopting 'Hawaiian Language' by July 1823. In Hawaiian, the language is called ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi.

Hawaiian is closely related to other Polynesian languages such as Samoan, Marquesan, Tahitian, Māori, Rapa Nui, and Tongan. According to Schütz (1994), Marquesans colonized the archipelago around 300 CE, with later waves from the Society Islands and Samoa-Tonga. Mutual intelligibility studies by Jack H. Ward (1962) found Hawaiian 41.2% intelligible with Marquesan, 37.5% with Tahitian, 25.5% with Samoan, and 6.4% with Tongan.

In 1896, the Republic of Hawaii passed Act 57, an English-only law banning Hawaiian as a medium of instruction in public schools, with strict physical punishment for children speaking Hawaiian. The language was not allowed again as a medium of instruction until 1987. From around 1949, attention to and promotion of the language gradually increased. Public Hawaiian-language immersion preschools called Pūnana Leo were established in 1984, followed by other immersion schools.

Reader's Guide

The Hawaiian language holds profound significance as the historic native language of the Hawaiian people and a key marker of cultural identity. Its near-displacement by English, especially after the 1896 ban on its use in schools, reflects a broader history of colonial suppression. The language's revival, beginning around 1949 and accelerating with immersion preschools in 1984, demonstrates resilience. Most early immersion students have since graduated from college, many as fluent speakers, yet UNESCO still classifies Hawaiian as critically endangered. The language's legacy includes the first Hawaiian-language constitution (1839–1840), a complete Bible translation (1839), and early newspapers (1834). Its orthography, created by Protestant missionaries, enabled rapid literacy. Hawaiian also contributed to the development of Hawaiian Pidgin (Hawaii Creole English), a more commonly spoken creole. The language's survival and revitalization efforts serve as a model for indigenous language preservation worldwide.

Did You Know?

• The Hawaiian language was banned as a medium of instruction in public schools from 1896 to 1987, a span of 91 years.
• The name 'Owhyhee' used by James Cook reflects the Hawaiian copula ʻo and the 18th-century English pronunciation of 'wh' as [ʍ].
• Hawaiian has a mutual intelligibility of 41.2% with Marquesan, according to a 1962 study by Jack H. Ward.
• Public Hawaiian-language immersion preschools called Pūnana Leo were established in 1984.