Use of the Written Hawaiian Language

Use of the Written Hawaiian Language

As a symbol of a proud Hawaiian national identity, Iolani Palace strives to reflect the history and lifestyle of Hawaii during the Kalakaua era. In keeping with how the Hawaiian language was written during the monarchy era time period, Iolani Palace does not include the use of diacritical marks, which are commonly used today.

The contemporary written Hawaiian language uses two diacritical markings as pronunciation guides, primarily for non-native speakers:

  • The (okina), which is typographically represented as a reversed apostrophe. In spoken Hawaiian, the (okina) indicates a glottal stop, or clean break between vowels.
  • The ¯ (kahako), or macron typographically represented as a bar above the letter, as in ā. The macron over a vowel indicates a longer accentuation in pronunciation of the vowel that it appears over.

Pictured: Queen Liliuokalani's songbook with music written in her own handwriting.
Click photos to enlarge.