Christianity in Hawai`i

When a young Hawaiian by the name of Henry Opukaha’ia sailed to New England, even he did not know the impact he would have on Christianity in Hawaii. While in the United States, after making the decision to become a Christian, he begged his teachers to send missionaries back to the Hawaiian Islands.

Opukaha’ia died before he could see his wishes become reality, but in 1819 the American Board of Commissioners of Foreign Missions for the Congregational Churches, (predecessor denomination of the United Church of Christ) sent its first missionaries to Hawaii. King Kamehameha II charged them “…to aim at making people of every class wise and good and happy.”

Following their arrival in Kailua-Kona, the first missionaries began to hold worship services. More missionaries came and in 1823 the Hawaiian Association of Ministers and Churches was formed. This organization became known as the Hawaiian Evangelical Association (HEA) in 1853. Following the merger of the Congregational Christian Church and the Evangelical and Reformed Church in 1957 this organization has been known as the Hawai`i Conference United Church of Christ.
The Hawaiian alphabet uses 12 Roman letters ( a, e, i, o, u, h, k, l, m, n, p, w), five (5) Roman letters (a, e, i, o, u) with a diacritical mark called a kahakô, and a diacritical mark called `okina. Number of letters in the Hawaiian alphabet: 10 vowels + 8 consonants = 18 letters. Here's the breakdown:

10 Hawaiian Vowels: 5 vowels: a e i o u [pronounced: ah eh ee oh oo] + 5 vowels with kahakô: â ê î ô û [pronounced with elongated sounds: AH EH EE OH OO]

What's a kahakô? (kaha = mark) + ( kô = elongate). It is a diacritical mark that is a horizontal line over a vowel to signify elongation of its sound. Instead of one beat of sound, give it two. In English, this mark is called the macron.

8 Hawaiian Consonants: h, k, l, m, n, p, w, ` [pronounced: heh, peh, keh, lah, moo, noo, peh, veh, `oh kee nah]

What's an `okina? (`oki = cut) + na (a suffix that makes a word a noun). It is a diacritical mark that looks like " a tiny "6" with the hole filled in." Known in English as a "glottal stop," it signifies a break in the breath, as in "oh-oh." Because `okina is recognized as a consonant, there are eight (8) consonants in the Hawaiian language.

All letters are sounded. No silent letters in Hawaiian. Vowels are sounded separately EXCEPT when two vowels are next to each other and the sound is then blended as diphthongs. Stress the last syllable if it contains a diphthong, otherwise, stress the "next-to-the-last" syllable.

"The Nuts and Bolts" of Pronunciating Hawaiian Words: Diphthong [dip' thong] = a blended sound from two vowels in a row, as in "ou" in house or "oi" in noise. In Hawaiian the two vowels are not so tightly joined as in English and BOTH must be "completely executed." The first vowel of the blended pair is stressed more.
HAWAI`I ALOHA

E Hawai`i e ku`u one hânau ê
[eh hah vai' ee-(y)eh koo' oo-(w)oh' neh HAH nau'-(w)eh]
Hawai`i my birth sands

Ku`u home kulaiwi nei
[koo' oo hoh' meh koo lah-(y)ee vee nei]
My beloved native home

`Oli nô au i nâ pono lani ou
[oh' lee NOH-(w)au-(y)ee NAH poh' noh lah' nee-(y)ou]
Joyful indeed am I in your heavenly righteousnesses

E Hawai`i Aloha ê
[eh hah vai' ee-(y)ah loh' hah-(Y)EH]
Beloved Hawai`i

Hui: Chorus:

E hau`oli e nâ `ôpio o Hawai`i nei
[eh hau oh' lee-(y)eh NAH OH pee-(Y)OH' hah vah ee nei]
Happy the youth of beloved Hawai`i

`Oli ê! `Oli ê!
[oh' lee-(Y)EH! oh' lee-(Y)EH!]
Rejoice! Rejoice!

Mai nâ aheahe makani e pâ mai nei
[mai NAH-(y)ah heh-(y)ah heh mah kah' nee-(y)eh PAH mai nei]
Come the gentle wind that blow here

Mau ke Aloha nô Hawai`i
[mau keh-(y)ah loh' hah NOH hah vai' ee]
Forever the Aloha for Hawai`i

(Alternate last verse):
Mau ke Aloha, Aloha ê!
[mau keh-(y)ah loh' hah hah vai' ee EH]
Forever the Aloha, Aloha!

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