Saying the name of the places in Hawaii correctly

[suzy5555]

I want to say the name of the places correctly when I visit Hawaii. Can someone direct me to a site/sites that maybe have .wav files that I can "hear" the names?

[CC Help Michell]

I want to say the name of the places correctly when I visit Hawaii. Can someone direct me to a site/sites that maybe have .wav files that I can "hear" the names?

 

http://www.molokai-hawaii.com/agents/pronounce.html (general guidelines on pronouncing the vowels depending on where they appear)

 

http://www.aloha-hawaii.com/hawaii/native+tongue/ (includes .wav files)

 

Have fun -- I really had a good time at least trying to learn how to say everything correctly. Since I teach phonics, it was usually pretty easy for my brain to see the various parts of even the longest words, but where the emphasis goes is very tricky with some Hawaiian words. Don't forget to learn the name of the Hawaiian state fish (humuhumunukunukuapua'a -- I still remember it, wow!)

[nc_roberta]

This is a great idea and I highly recommend that anyone with an upcoming trip try to take some time and learn how to pronounce things! That is one thing I made a note of that I really regretted not doing before our trip. When you rent a car and try to tell your driver/husband what road to look for, what city you are in, or anything else, it is very hard when you cannot say the name! Plus, I somehow felt that I would have been a more respectful visitor had I taken the time to learn how to say the names properly.

[Spikesgirl]

MichellP - the best part about the huma - the translation~ Fish with a nose like a pig!

 

Another thing that helps with the Hawaiian language to to pronuouce everything. No such thing as a silent letter in their language - usually vowels are separated by a gutteral stop.

 

Charlie

[jerseyjk]

Another thing that helps with the Hawaiian language to to pronuouce everything.

 

This was the rule of thumb I heard and applied during my trip. I did pretty well if I do say so myself. Take a second to really look at the word and then pronouce everything. You'll be pretty close if not right on.

[suzy5555]

I found a couple more sites with sound bits

 

http://www.fireworkstudios.com/culture.html

 

www.instanthawaii.com

 

I'm practicing and getting better.:)

[AZ Karaoke Girl]

I bought a Kauai Revealed book at the library and it had phonetic's & vocabulary info in it that I found very useful. I began to talk and pronounce many things in the proper way and my DH was impressed. It is embarassing when you get back home and try to prounounce where you went and you can't pronounce it. Like our port in Nawiliwili:p

[almostparadise]

I want to say the name of the places correctly when I visit Hawaii. Can someone direct me to a site/sites that maybe have .wav files that I can "hear" the names?

 

So funny when malahinis (visitor / newcomer) tries to say Hawaiian words.

 

Here's another site to understand the locals pidgin

 

http://www.extreme-hawaii.com/pidgin/vocab/

[suzy5555]

So funny when malahinis (visitor / newcomer) tries to say Hawaiian words.

 

Here's another site to understand the locals pidgin

 

Then I'm going to be really entertaining.:D My southern accent trying to speak Hawaiian.

 

Yukon - "is embarassing when you get back home and try to prounounce where you went and you can't pronounce it. Like our port in Nawiliwili:p"

 

That is exactly what made me want to learn. I have spent many hours reading on this board to prepare for our trip and when I went to tell someone everywhere I wanted to go, I couldn't pronounce the names. As a child, I didn't learn to read from phonics so I struggle more than the average bear probably.

[CC Help Michell]

So funny when malahinis (visitor / newcomer) tries to say Hawaiian words.

 

Here's another site to understand the locals pidgin

 

http://www.extreme-hawaii.com/pidgin/vocab/

 

I know it HAS to be funny, but as someone above me said, it was a sign of my respect for Hawaiian culture and language that I at least TRIED to say them as correctly as I could. I think most of the residents we encountered were appreciative of my efforts, even if the guy at Fair Wind II probably did get frustrated as I just couldn't quite "hear" where the emphasis goes in Kealakekua -- it's sort of on the first "a," which isn't typical in English (in English it would normally be on the second "ke" part of the word, or on the "ku" syllable) -- I still don't think I ever got it quite right. Maybe I have to go back to practice some more? :)

 

As for pidgin -- I love it, I love hearing it, I love seeing it written, and I've both read and heard enough now that I can usually figure out what's being said when people talk about "da kine" and "chicken skin" and "an den" etc. That's not something I tried to use, though -- I was afraid the "oh look, here's another mainland dork trying to speak like the locals" factor would apply! :)

[el820]

I want to say the name of the places correctly when I visit Hawaii. Can someone direct me to a site/sites that maybe have .wav files that I can "hear" the names?

 

One of our excursion drivers advised us to say all the vowels in the word.

[HiloSunshine]

I know it HAS to be funny, but as someone above me said, it was a sign of my respect for Hawaiian culture and language that I at least TRIED to say them as correctly as I could. I think most of the residents we encountered were appreciative of my efforts, even if the guy at Fair Wind II probably did get frustrated as I just couldn't quite "hear" where the emphasis goes in Kealakekua -- it's sort of on the first "a," which isn't typical in English (in English it would normally be on the second "ke" part of the word, or on the "ku" syllable) -- I still don't think I ever got it quite right. Maybe I have to go back to practice some more? :)

 

As for pidgin -- I love it, I love hearing it, I love seeing it written, and I've both read and heard enough now that I can usually figure out what's being said when people talk about "da kine" and "chicken skin" and "an den" etc. That's not something I tried to use, though -- I was afraid the "oh look, here's another mainland dork trying to speak like the locals" factor would apply! :)

We had a bus driver in Kauai that had a loooooong Hawaiian name and gave a prize to the one who could remember it and pronounce it correctly by the end of the tour. I lost. lol.

The one thing you have to remember is to say the Hawaiian words correctly. Say it wrong, and it might end up meaning something entirely different.

[beachchick]

One of our excursion drivers advised us to say all the vowels in the word.

 

That is correct...except that sometimes when a word or place name has three vowels in a row, Hawaiians will kind of "slur" the vowels together. Overall, you would pronounce all vowels, and what's truly easy for us haoles is that vowels have only one pronunciation. You don't have to figure out if it's "long" or "short" or anything else.

 

I was very lucky in that my DH had already spent quite a bit of time in the islands working and visiting, so he was able to teach me at home before we went on our first visit together. Even so, it took me most of that first trip before the pronunciations came easily to me. For the first 10 days or so, I would look at a new long word, sound it out in my head, and then say it. Now, I'm quite comfortable with the language. These days I'm working on making my pidgin sound less haole and more natural.:D

 

beachchick

[jerseyjk]

It should also be mentioned that you should never be ashamed to ask how something is pronounced. Everyone I ever asked while there was always happy to help (usually with a little chuckle because I'm sure they hear incorrect versions a lot) ... Keauhou (as in Keauhou Bay) was one word I just couldn't "get". I asked the cab driver and he set me straight.

 

While I was there I found that everyone was mispronouncing my last name. Tour guides, matre d's, rental car agents, everyone. It's a very simple word, so I just couldn't understand it. Finally one of the tour guides pointed out that it just happens to be a Hawaiian word which gave us a chuckle.