[wpaudio url=”http://www.hawaiibookblog.com/mea/2011/04/hopunaolelo.mp3″ text=”Hopuna ʻŌlelo” ]
Pronunciation.
Ke ʻoe kiʻo a kākau i ka hopuna ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi me ka hewa pēia: [hay-moh-lay-lay], e make ana ka pōpoki iki. ʻAʻole ʻoe makemake i nā pōpoki iki?
A little kitten dies everytime you poop out Hawaiian pronunciation incorrectly like this: [hay-moh-lay-lay]. Do you not like kittens?
If you must (you know who you are), here are a few tips:
a → [uh], NOT [ah]
ā (with a macron / kahakō) → [ah] is OKAY
e → [eh], NEVER [ay]
ae → [ahy]
ai → [uhy], or SOMETIMES [ey]
Hawaiian Word |
Evil Guide |
Better Guide |
| ʻukulele (the instrument) mākaʻikaʻi (to sightsee) ʻakeu (active) Pōʻalima Hemolele (Good Friday) |
[you-koo-lay-lay] [mah-kuy-kuy] [ah-kay-ooh] [poh-ah-lee-mah hay-moh-lay-lay] | [oo-koo-leh-leh] [mah-kuh-‘ee-kuh-‘ee] [‘uh-keh-oo] [poh-‘uh-lee-muh heh-moh-leh-leh] |
An even better guide would use the IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) for Hawaiian. The best way is to hear the pronunciations.
Please note: No kittens were harmed in the making of this ʻŌlelo of the Day. This is all in good fun. The author means no disrespect, and encourages everyone to learn and appreciate the Hawaiian language. If you ever find any errors in the ʻŌlelo of the Day (there certainly are some), please correct us. HBB & ʻŌlelo of the Day are always happy to learn and share alike.
