Moving to Hawaii has been a revelation in many ways. Not only are we a minority among an island of minorities (there is no one dominant ethnic group in Hawaii), but we “speak funny” –in other words, we speak mainland English, so we don’t sound like “locals,” who often speak Pidgin. Pidgin is a combination of English, Hawaiian, Japanese, Chinese…and who knows what else!
It has been an education just learning to communicate here. Certainly, it only took me a few days of “doctoring” to learn that shi-shi is urination and do-do is defacation, and most everyone knows the meaning of aloha and mahalo……but I find more pidgin creeping into my everday language. I am shocked to hear myself talk to a patient: “Aloha, Auntie. Howzit? You like trow up? Choke shi-shi? Haad rub today? Feel junk? K’den, smoke some pakalolo-you feel mo’bettah!”
I’ll share some more of what I’ve learned:
A hui hou-see you later!
Akamai-smart, wise, intelligent
Auntie-any older woman
Choke-plenty
Brok ‘da mout-good food (ono grinds)
Bumbye-when we get around to it (bye and bye)
Brah-brother
Da Kine-the real thing, the whatchamacallit (but often used as a filler like “ya know” or “um”)
‘Eh?-you know?
Fo’ real?-For real, are you kidding me?
Geev ‘um-go for it, go for broke
Grinds-food
Haad rub-hard time
Haole-caucasian
Hale-house, home
Hana-work
Howzit? How is it going?
Junk-feel bad, rotten
K’den-Okay then
Kahuna-priest
Kama’aina-resident, local person
Kane-man
Kapu-taboo, forbidden
Kapuna-elder
Keiki-children
Kokua-help, have courtesy (“Please kokua, no airbrakes!”)
Lua-bathroom
Makai-toward the sea
Malahini-newcomer
Mauka-toward the mountain, uphill
Ono-good
Ono grinds-duh! Good Food!
Okole-rear end, butt, a**hole
Ohana-family
Pakalolo-crazy smoke, marijuana
Pau-finished
Pau Hana-done with work!
Planny-plenty
Slippahs-flip flops, thong shoes
Tutu-grandma
Tutu kane-grandpa
Uncle-any older man
Wahine-woman
WikiWiki-quick
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