akamai(ah-kah-mai) (nvs) Smart, clever, expert.
Example
English: Billy! Straight As! You’re so smart!
Pidgin: Billy! You no get caught? Akamai buggah, ah you?!
Note: ‘Ōlelo is a Hawaiian word meaning language, speech, word, etc. To see the current list of Hawaiian and Pidgin words, definitions, and usage please click on
‘Opihi, limu,
off the rocks. Sort, wash, shake, salt;
Open up your mouth.
~Uncle Kahana
For more character haiku click here.
kulolo(koo-loh-loh) (n) Thick Hawaiian coconut and taro pudding often served in slices.
Example
English: Mom! This fudge is weird! It doesn’t even taste like chocolate.
Pidgin: Get kulolo? Awesome!
Note: ‘Ōlelo is a Hawaiian word meaning language, speech, word, etc. To see the current list of Hawaiian and Pidgin words, definitions, and usage please click on
Shave ice tingles, bites
lips, tongue, cheeks. Strawberry frost
chills all the way down.
~Zader
For more character haiku click here.
Hawaiian Pidgin, as a language, is raw. It communicates on a visceral, no shibai level, cutting to the heart of the matter with a few quick words in an inflection that can leave you bloody on the floor. There’s a reason my kids don’t worry if I’m scolding in English; they know when I’m really mad the Pidgin comes out.
Significant Moments in da Life of Oriental Faddah and Son, One Hawai‘i Okinawan Journal by Lee A. Tonouchi is a powerful collection of epic poems written in Hawaiian Pidgin that tell the complicated story of multigenerational family relationships. It’s a semi-autobiographical journey from childhood into adulthood that made me laugh out loud, cry, and shake my head at Tonouchi’s very personal experiences that are on many levels so universal.
Tonouchi’s mastery of Pidgin rings true to the ear and heart with an eye for the significant detail that conveys pages of meaning in a few well-chosen phrases. I’ve never met Tonouchi, but I know his voice. I’m sure we hung out at the swings at Kahului Elementary, played shambattle at Summer Fun, and hid behind the oleander bushes at neighborhood backyard kanikapila jam sessions talking story, playing trumps, and swapping Diamond Head strawberry sodas.
Fo’real. His poetry is that good. If you’re a native Pidgin speaker, this book is a treasure.
Oriental Faddah and Son by Lee A. Tonouchi, published by Bess Press is available as a trade paperback directly from the publisher, Amazon, and Barnes & Noble and most stores where books are sold in Hawai‘i.