Hawai'ian creole

Introduction

Man Surfing

Hawai‘ian Creole (somewhat inaccurately called Pidgin English, or simply Pidgin) is based on English and Hawai'ian. It is not the same as Hawai'ian, an Austronesian language spoken by the indigenous inhabitants of the islands. Although English and Hawai'ian are the co-official languages of the State of Hawai‘i, Pidgin is widely used by Hawai'i's residents in a variety of situations.

Hawaii Map Hawai‘ian Creole grew out of the pidgin Hawai'ian originally used in the sugar and pineapple plantations by workers who came from a variety of language backgrounds. As a result, it was influenced by many languages, including English, Hawai'ian, Portuguese, Spanish, Cantonese, Ilocano, Korean, Okinawan, and Japanese. In the 19th and 20th century, Hawai'ian pidgin spread from the plantations into urban areas and became the primary means of communication among different ethnic groups. Public school children learned it from their classmates, and eventually it became the primary language of most people in Hawai‘i, replacing the original languages. For this reason, linguists generally consider Hawai'ian Pidgin to be a creole language.

Even though Hawai'ian Pidgin is a full-fledged language with its own sound system, grammar, vocabulary, and pragmatics, it is generally considered to be substandard and its use is usually associated with low socio-economic and educational status. It is perceived as an obstacle to success in education and in the work force. Its role vis-à-vis standard English in the schools of Hawai‘i has been a subject of continued debate.

Nevertheless, most people raised in Hawai‘i can speak and understand Hawai'ian Pidgin to some extent. Many people who know Pidgin can code-switch between standard American English and Pidgin, depending on the situation. Knowledge of Pidgin is considered by many to be an important part of being considered a kama'aina "local."

Structure

Sound System

Man playing guitar

Children dancing

The pronunciation of Hawai'ian Pidgin differs from Standard American English (SAE) in several ways. Among its notable features are the following:

It has syllable-timed rhythm which means that all syllables have approximately the same length (similarly to Spanish, Italian, and many South Asian languages). SAE, on the other hand, has stress-timed rhythm which means that stressed syllables are longer than unstressed ones.
The sound /th/ as in thin and the sound // as in then are replaced by /t/ and /d/ respectively, e.g., thin is pronounced as /tin/ and then is pronounced as /den/.
The article the is pronounced as /da/.
The sound /r/ after vowels is dropped, e.g., better is pronounced as /beta/.
Questions are marked with a falling intonation unlike SAE where questions are marked with a rising tone.

Click here to listen to samples of Hawai'ian Pidgin.

Grammar

The grammar of Hawai'ian Pidgin also differs from Standard American English in several ways, some of which are outlined below:

The copula verb "to be" is dropped when referring to inherent qualities, e.g., Da baby cute.
The verb "stay" is used in place of "to be" when referring to temporary states or locations, e.g., Da book stay on top da table. This can be a bit confusing because Da wata stay cold means "The water is cold."
Past tense is represented by wen "went" before the verb, e.g., Da baby wen cry "The baby cried."
Future tense is represented by the word goin "going" before the verb, e.g., Da baby goin eat "The baby will (is going to) eat."
Verb negation is expressed by the word neva "never" in front of the verb, e.g., Da baby neva like poi "The baby didn't like poi." This can be confusing because it can also mean "The baby never liked poi."
Fo "for" is used instead of "to" after verbs, e.g., I tryin fo tink "I am trying to think."

Vocabulary

Hawaiin food

necklace

Malasada

Paniolo

Hawai'ian Pidgin has absorbed words from many languages. Here are a few examples of loanwords:

Hawai'ian
akamai	clever
wiki	fast
pau	finished
hana	work
lanai	porch
puka	hole
pupu	appetizer
ohana	home, family
ono	good
mahalo	thank you
lei	flower garland
Portuguese
malasada	small doughnut without a hole
Spanish
paniolo	cowboy (from Español, i.e., Mexican vaquero)
Japanese
musubi	triangle-shaped rice ball
bento	lunch box
zori	sandal, thong
wasabi	horseradish paste
Filipino
kalamungay	horseradish
lumpia	Filipino egg roll
pancit	egg noodles

And finally, the ubiquitous da kine which ranges in meaning from "kind of" to "whatchamacallit." The expression's origins are not known.

Writing

Yamanaka

Writing and performing arts
In recent years, Hawai'ian writers have written poems, short stories, and plays in Pidgin. Among them are well-known Hawai'i authors such as Japanese Hawai'ian poet and novelist Lois-Ann Yamanaka and Lee Tonouchi. Several theater companies in Hawai'i produce plays written and performed in Pidgin. The most notable of these companies is Kumu Kahua Theater

Resources

Da Kine Dictionary (to order hard copy)
Pidgin to da max hana hou (to order hard copy)
e-Hawaii's Searchable Pidgin English Dictionary
Wikipedia article on Hawai'ian Pidgin