Author Archives: Liana

1. Cool, cold; coolness, temperature. Nu ʻuanu (place name), cool elevation. hoʻānu To cool. (PCP anu.) 2. nvi. Cold, influenza; to have a cold. Ua loa ʻa i ke anu, to get a cold. It must be that time of the year … Continue reading →

nvi. To dream or fancy; fantasy; dream of a cherished wish, whether good or bad. I wouldn’t say Martin Luther King, Jr., had a fantasy when he uttered his famous speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. But it … Continue reading →

When the bait is not good, fish will not gather to eat it. See the word palu? Palu is fish bait. Sometimes people use the word palu to refer to vomit (or to vomit), probably because it looks similar . But … Continue reading →

To claim honors not rightfully due, to seek preferment, to aspire to the best or to more than is one’s due; to claim to be of higher rank than one is.   Oʻahu drivers know Piʻikoi Avenue in Honolulu. This street … Continue reading →

nvt. Right, privilege, concern, responsibility, title, business, property, estate, portion, jurisdiction, authority, liability, interest, claim, ownership, tenure, affair, province; reason, cause, function, justification; small piece of property, as within an ahupuaʻa; blood relative through whom a relationship to less close … Continue reading →

1. nvt. To bite; to have a tendency to bite, as a dog; to sting, as beating rain; pain, as of stomachache or of childbirth; bite. hoʻo.nahu To bite, cause a stomachache; to pretend to bite. Remember how I mentioned once … Continue reading →

nvs. Dollar, silver, money, price, currency, means, funds; moneyed.  The Hawaiian word for money, kālā, is transliterized from the English word, dollar. Makes sense that it would be so since kālā is a foreign introduction into Hawai‘i. In some older writings, … Continue reading →

To communicate I am sure many of you have heard of hoʻoponopono. Literally hoʻoponopono means “to make right”. This is the Hawaiian way to restore and maintain peace within the extended ʻohana. One main objective of hoʻoponopono is to be … Continue reading →

n.v. Steadfast, firm, constant, immovable; loyal, faithful; determined; loyalty, allegiance, firmness. It hasn’t been quite a week into the makahiki hou. Today’s He Momi, Kūpaʻa, should be a reminder to be firm and determined in your new year “evolutions”, whatever … Continue reading →

1. vs. New, fresh, recent. Ka-puna-hou (place name), the new spring. (PPN foʻou.) 2. vs. Again, more, re- (as in hoʻoponopono hou, re-edit). Hana hou, do again, repeat; encore. 3. vt. To push, thrust, poke, stab, shove, prick, plunge, ram, jab, drill, bore, pierce, … Continue reading →