Learning Place Names of Hawaiʻi

I was searching my photo stream for a shot taken at the Mauna Kea Resortʻs Copper Bar, which has been named to USA Todayʻs list of the Top 10 Beach Bars (a topic in itself for another day), when I stumbled across a photo of a slide that was up on the screen when Hawaiʻi Life put on its Worthshop conference with sessions in the private meeting room next to the Copper Bar. I could not resist the challenge…and it took me down an entire rabbit hole of associations, which turned into this post as fast as my fingers could type.

The Importance of Place Names in Hawaiʻi

Right after the pandemic when the rush of newcomers to Hawaiʻi began, I wrote a series of three blog posts on whether or not the “welcome mat” was out for newcomers to Hawaiʻi. The posts were meant to help newer residents understand how to be respectful, responsible members of their new communities, because while some of the ways in which you would do that on the continent are helpful here too, Hawaiʻi has its own culture and traditional ways of being in community, of moving from malihini (newcomer or visitor) to kamaʻaina (person belonging to this place).

The second post, The Welcome Mat for Newcomers – Whatʻs in a Name, talked about pronouncing names correctly, beginning with the name of your street and subdivision and town. There was so much I did not write about in that post. Like – please do not be offended when someone asks you “Where are you from?” or “Where is home for you?” I should probably have started there! You are not being singled out as a newcomer; this is part of the formula used in introductions in the Hawaiian language and culture. It is how you will hear people introduce themselves in a business or community meeting, even in casual conversation sitting next to a stranger at a music festival.

Like this weekend, I introduced myself to a couple as I took a seat near them in the VIP ticket section for the second afternoon of the Waikoloa Music and Cultural Festival, “Hi, Iʻm Beth. My friend and I drove down from Kohala but I have an office here in Queens Marketplace. It seems you also have connections to the organizers and hālau. Whereʻs home for you?” When we name our places here, it is an opportunity to find mutual friends and experiences we share. Place is the basis for us to feel connected.

Halau o Kekuhi – you can count that they will represent the energy, places, and people of the eruptive and regenerative forces of the East Side of Hawaiʻi Island

Similarly, you cannot spend a weekend watching hula and listening to traditional Hawaiian music without hearing constantly about place. Thatʻs one of the reasons I recommend listening to Hawaiian music for learning about Hawaiʻi – especially live performances where the singers or kumu hula will tell you about the places and the stories behind the songs.

How Did You Do with the Challenge: Ten Places in Hawaiʻi with Names of Four Letters or Less?

Ten Places with short names. If you want to take a moment to try this before reading on, be my guest. You could even use the dropdown menu for property search on our Hawaiʻi Life website to cheat!

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This one is tricky by the way. I doubt the the framer of the question was considering the ʻokina as a consonant – but it is one, making some familiar place names five letters, not four. For example you might have chosen two of the four largest islands for your list: Maui and Oʻahu. Technically Oʻahu has five letters. You should pronounce it with the ʻokina by the way.

But I will give you a pass for this quiz. Even on our website, it reads Oahu. And trust me, I have been trying for years to get our blog editors/tech team to figure out why the kahakō (that flat line above certain vowels like the “o” in kahakō) will not appear on my published blog even though I insert it in the text.

—-Drumroll for my answers.

I started with those two major islands, Maui and Oʻahu, then thought quickly of zip codes. I live in Hawi and I look across the channel at Hana. On Thursday I will drive to Hilo for a Hawaiʻi Land Trust Reception. Last year I attended a similar event on Maui at a home in Kula, passing through Paia on my way there. Thinking about our listing of Hana Ranch reminded me of our listing of Dillingham Ranch, which reminded me of two other towns with their own zip codes on Oʻahu: Aiea and Laie.

Two island plus seven towns – Iʻm at nine already.

I only need one more. So many choices! If I went broad, traditionally from the mokupuni or island level of land and resource management, the next division would be moku which roughly translates into our Countyʻs districts. So Puna – its place names well represented in many of the ʻoli to which Hālau o Kehuhi was dancing at the Waikoloa Music and Cultural Festival on Saturday afternoon (see the photo above).

Thatʻs ten.

There were other four-letter words (place names) celebrated during the festival, like in the beautiful mele (song) Keʻei performed by Nā Palapalai on Sunday. Or I could have named Paoʻo where I will participate in a site visit to monitor conservation easements this week. On the other hand Kona is not a place name, any more than, saying “west” or “leeward” is a place rather than a description of where a place is located.

Please leave a note in the comments if your place in Hawaiʻi is a name of four letters or fewer that I missed!