Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Saying Aloha in Hawai'i Nei

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • Saying Aloha in Hawai'i Nei

    E kala mai, but I just wanted to tell you something that has happened when I've been in Hawai'i Nei. I've discovered that everybody who works in any store, hotel, restaurant, etc. says aloha to people who come in, no matter what ethnicity he/she is. Unknowingly, I've started blabbing in 'olelo, and most of those people don't answer. This disappoints me all the time. Think about it. What if a Hawaiian person working in a restaurant in Mexico said hola to a Spanish-speaking person, and then the Spanish person says something like, "COMO ESTAS HOY?" and the Hawaiian doesn't respond. Follow?

    What do you think about this? Do you think the word aloha should only be said by native Hawaiians, or should everybody in Hawai'i Nei show their love for each other in 'olelo?
    'Alika

  • #2
    Re: Saying Aloha in Hawai'i Nei

    Your example doesn't work. In Mexico, it's reasonable to expect that people you encounter speak Spanish. In Hawaii, it's unreasonable to expect that people you encounter speak Hawaiian. In fact, it's kind of silly. Where you live, how many people can you name who are fluent in a native American language?
    But I'm disturbed! I'm depressed! I'm inadequate! I GOT IT ALL! (George Costanza)
    GrouchyTeacher.com

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: Saying Aloha in Hawai'i Nei

      'zis mean I can't say "ciao" as I depart from a gathering of friends, because I'm not fluent in Italian? (Or just because it sounds pretentious? )

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: Saying Aloha in Hawai'i Nei

        E Leo e, I'm a little confused. Are those friends Italian or not? If they don't speak it, they may think that it was weird. I don't know.

        Scrivener, I know where you're coming from. I hadn't considered that, so mahalo nui loa.

        Those said, I don't think I had gotten any input from you guys regarding the question I had asked in my original post. What do you have to say?
        'Alika

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: Saying Aloha in Hawai'i Nei

          Some Hawaiian words and phrases are used just as greetings in local business here. It's expected to not carry on a fluent Native Hawaiian conversation in commerce.

          Basically, every area has unwritten rules for its lingua franca. You just need to know what to expect.
          Twitter: LookMaICanWrite


          flickr

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: Saying Aloha in Hawai'i Nei

            Yes and when that recorded annoucement on The Bus says "Aloha" as the doors open, that should not mean that the driver necessarily be conversant in Hawaiian either.

            Sometimes greeting are used as a sign of respect or acknowledgement of a culture/language. i can't tell you how some korean restaurans owners faces light up when I say "kamsa Hamida" (spellng??), but I assure you they dont expect me to converse in Korean...
            n'importe

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: Saying Aloha in Hawai'i Nei

              Originally posted by Leo Lakio View Post
              'zis mean I can't say "ciao" as I depart from a gathering of friends, because I'm not fluent in Italian? (Or just because it sounds pretentious? )
              Originally posted by akrauth View Post
              E Leo e, I'm a little confused. Are those friends Italian or not? If they don't speak it, they may think that it was weird. I don't know.
              I've heard "ciao" used in the U.S. for many decades amongst many different nationalities and no one thought it was weird. It has/had nothing to do with Italian friends.

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: Saying Aloha in Hawai'i Nei

                Hiki no, now a follow-up question. If I get back there and hear someone say aloha to me, do I have the right to say something like "aloha mai," "aloha nui," or an aloha greeting depending on what time of day it is and leave it at that until I hear the other person say something? That way, I know whether he/she knows a little more than that or not.

                Also, whenever someone says mahalo, I respond with "'A'ole pilikia!" And when he/she says aloha meaning goodbye, I usually say a hui hou. Is that okay to do?
                'Alika

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: Saying Aloha in Hawai'i Nei

                  Originally posted by akrauth View Post
                  Hiki no, now a follow-up question. If I get back there and hear someone say aloha to me, do I have the right to say something like "aloha mai," "aloha nui," or an aloha greeting depending on what time of day it is and leave it at that until I hear the other person say something? That way, I know whether he/she knows a little more than that or not.

                  Also, whenever someone says mahalo, I respond with "'A'ole pilikia!" And when he/she says aloha meaning goodbye, I usually say a hui hou. Is that okay to do?
                  I don't know if "right" is the correct term to use. But to answer your question, I would think those would be acceptable responses--they're pretty much everyday sayings.

                  Basic rule of thumb--if Hawaiian isn't your native language, just don't try too hard. Same would apply for any other language.
                  Twitter: LookMaICanWrite


                  flickr

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: Saying Aloha in Hawai'i Nei

                    Originally posted by Mike_Lowery View Post
                    I don't know if "right" is the correct term to use. But to answer your question, I would think those would be acceptable responses--they're pretty much everyday sayings.

                    Basic rule of thumb--if Hawaiian isn't your native language, just don't try too hard. Same would apply for any other language.
                    Don't try too hard to do what? Get everything pololei? I think before I speak.
                    'Alika

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: Saying Aloha in Hawai'i Nei

                      I will tell you a story:

                      four teenagers are in a public restaurant; they are in pairs of two, and while they don't know each other, they do not realize that they are but one degree of separation. Two girls are learning ʻōlelo in high school; the other two are Hawaiian immersion students. The two newbies are going at it in Hawaiian; taking full delight in their abilities to describe and converse and babble. The other two, because they have been raised speaking/educated in Hawaiian, chill in English. Being bilingual is no big thang. But when the newbies are painfully obvious that they are newbies, the immersion girls giggle.

                      Sensing that they were being mocked, newbies get their feathers ruffled and start to talk smack about the other two girls (who they had no idea could rap them under the table). So the two H.I. girls get up to leave, because they are getting mad, but on the way out, they tell the sassier of the newbies that they are saying xyz wrong.

                      H.I. girls' experience goes around the school; everybody gets a good chuckle. Come to find out how each is tied to the other; newbie girls are *beyond* embarrassed and a reunion is coordinated to allow for apologies.

                      Cultural nuance and we are talking very bright girls who were sure that what they said was pololei. That is "try hard".

                      pax

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: Saying Aloha in Hawai'i Nei

                        Originally posted by akrauth View Post
                        Don't try too hard to do what? Get everything pololei? I think before I speak.
                        Don't try to hard to fit in. Even I don't know half of the Hawaiian words you use, and I lived here all my life.
                        Twitter: LookMaICanWrite


                        flickr

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: Saying Aloha in Hawai'i Nei

                          It didn't take me very long to start saying "aloha" and "mahalo" in response to the way that people use them with me, whether they're local folks or imports like myself. Most of the folks I deal with in the real estate community use them in business conversations. On the other hand, if we're talking about a real estate transaction, it's "land." If I'm talking with neighbors about our homeless population or Native Hawaiian issues, it's "aina." Pono, malama, kanaka, ohana - all words that I use sometimes in conversation, understanding that they all carry a greater weight than their most straightforwad definitions. "Equivalent" English words don't carry that weight or suit those converations. Am I wrong to use them at all? I have one haole friend who thinks so, most especially regarding "aloha" as a greeting. It has never been my intention to be disrespectful, but if I'm seen that way I need to make some changes.
                          Bloggin my way to the big time

                          http://skeetsstuff.skeeterbess.com/

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Re: Saying Aloha in Hawai'i Nei

                            Originally posted by skeeterbess View Post
                            It didn't take me very long to start saying "aloha" and "mahalo" in response to the way that people use them with me, whether they're local folks or imports like myself. Most of the folks I deal with in the real estate community use them in business conversations. On the other hand, if we're talking about a real estate transaction, it's "land." If I'm talking with neighbors about our homeless population or Native Hawaiian issues, it's "aina." Pono, malama, kanaka, ohana - all words that I use sometimes in conversation, understanding that they all carry a greater weight than their most straightforwad definitions. "Equivalent" English words don't carry that weight or suit those converations. Am I wrong to use them at all? I have one haole friend who thinks so, most especially regarding "aloha" as a greeting. It has never been my intention to be disrespectful, but if I'm seen that way I need to make some changes.

                            I was gonna stay out of this 'cause I know zip about the Hawaiian language other than what I've picked up from phone conversations and reading (and typesetting stuff), but the bit I highlighted in your statement got the better of me.

                            Couple of questions....

                            1) Why?

                            2) Any Hawaiian tell ya to not speak the language?

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Re: Saying Aloha in Hawai'i Nei

                              Akrauth, there is NO hard and fast "one rule fits all" here. Every person will react differently.
                              You'll know you did right if you earn a smile.
                              You'll know you did wrong if you get whapped upside da head.
                              There's your answer(s).
                              .
                              .

                              That's my story, and I'm sticking to it.

                              Comment

                              Working...
                              X