HONOLULU (KHON2) – We all make use of our island roadways, but when was the last time you paid attention to their given names? 

Did you know you could learn more about Hawaiʻi and our language if you did?

Our weekly “Aloha Authentic” segment highlights various streets across the islands so we can dig into those names, and in turn, learn something new. 

This week, we continue to celebrate Hawaiian Language Month by learning a little more of ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi.

In the ahupuaʻa of Honolulu, which lies within the moku of Kona here on Oʻahu, stands a street whose name means “thanks” or “gratitude.” 

We are talking about Mahalo Street.

As we continue to celebrate Mahina ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi, here are some common Hawaiian phrases you can learn to use. 

Saying mahalo to someone to share your appreciation is perfect. 

But to elaborate a little more on that phrase, you could say mahalo nui meaning “thanks a lot,” or even mahalo nui loa which means “thank you very much.”

When starting a Hawaiian sentence with the letter E, pronounced as “eh,” it turns the sentence into a command.

So, if you want to tell someone “to go,” you can tell them E hele. 

But to be more specific with direction, the phrase E hele mai means “come here” pertaining to the person speaking. 

On the contrary, if the person speaking wants to tell someone to “go away,” you would say the phrase E hele aku.

If you need to apologize, you can ask for forgiveness by simply saying E kala mai meaning “excuse me.”

As Hawaiian Language Month slowly comes to a close, Hawaiian language itself continues to build momentum.

The phrase E ola ka ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi is used to celebrate the native tongue of Hawaiʻi, translating to “Hawaiian Langauge shall live.”

Did you know? Now you do!