Pidgin – Hawaii’s Third Language
Eh, howzit? Wassamattah you? Cannah talk da kine? (Hey, how’s it
going? What’s the matter? Can’t you speak Pidgin?) Pidgin is the
local language, spoken by many people in Hawaii. Even though it
sounds like a simplified, broken version of English, it is actually
not. Linguists call it Hawaiian Creole English. It has its own
vocabulary and grammar. There’s even a Pidgin dictionary on the
market and a New Testament Bible called “Da Jesus Book,” which is
entirely written in Pidgin.
You can hear Pidgin everywhere in Hawaii. It’s the common language
among the locals and is way beyond a mere street language. Even the
governor speaks it from time to time.
Some children grow up learning Pidgin as their first language. It
truly is Hawaii’s unofficial third language, besides English and
Hawaiian.
To many visitors, Pidgin sounds very familiar, as it is partly
English, but the roots are also from the
Hawaiian language and the
languages that were spoken by the plantation workers, who came to
Hawaii in the 19th century. Pidgin has some Chinese, Portuguese,
Japanese and other influences.
History of Pidgin
The language has an interesting history. In the past, when Hawaiian
was still the main language in the islands and English was taking
over more and more, the first mix of the two tongues took place.
Then these early beginnings of the new language were enriched by
expressions of the plantation workers, who came mostly from China,
Japan and the Philippines. But even Spanish expressions were mixed
in, which workers from Mexico and Puerto Rico brought with them.
So Pidgin was the result when immigrants of various cultural and
lingual backgrounds had to communicate with each other. Words and
whole phrases as well as grammatical structures from all the
different languages came into the blender and out came a new
language that everyone could understand.
You might not become an expert in it, but it is good to know some of
the key expressions and vocabulary so that you don’t have to wonder
what the local people around you are talking about. How much Pidgin
you’ll need to know depends on where you work and in what
neighborhood you live in. For many, speaking Pidgin is a statement
of pride to be Hawaiian and a connection to the past of these
amazing islands.
Pidgin Words and Phrases
Akamai: smart
Brah / bruddah: brother or pal. Most men refer to each other this
way.
Broke da mout: delicious
Buggah: This word can refer to a guy, a girl, or a thing. It is one
of those universal words that fit many situations.
Bumbucha: really big
Chicken skin: goose bumps
Da kine: The most important pidgin expression and used for
everything and anything of which you do not remember the correct
name right at the moment.
Fo’ what: why
Fo’ real: really
Garans: guaranteed
Grind: to eat
Grinds: Good food. When you read “local grinds” you can expect some
ono (yummie) Hawaiian dishes.
Hana hou: one more time, do it again
Hele on: let's go, move on, get moving
Howzit: How are you? How's it going?
Huhu: mad, angry
Kay den: Okay, if that's the way you want it.
Keiki: child
Kokua: care, help
Like beef?: want to fight?
Lolo: dumb, crazy
Lua: bathroom
Moke: big, tough local
Nevah: never
Opake: ghost
Opu: belly
Okole: buttocks
Ono: delicious
Pau: finished, e.g. pau hana means to be done with work
Pupus: appetizers
Spahk: check it out
Stink Eye: a very dirty look
Talk stink: badmouth someone
Tita: a very tough girl, it also means sister or sistah
Talk story: sitting together and talking about life or whatever
comes to mind
Tutu: grandmother
Tutu kane: grandfather
Whaddsdascoops: What is happening? What's going on?
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