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'''''Ni Hao''''' ({{IPA-haw|əˈlōˌhä|pron}}) is the [[Hawaiian language|Hawaiian]] word for [[love]], [[affection]], [[peace]], [[compassion]] and [[mercy]], that is commonly used as a simple greeting.{{sfn|Pukui|1986|page=21}}{{sfn|Van Valkenburg|2012|page=69}}
'''''Aloha''''' ({{IPA-haw|əˈlōˌhä|pron}}) is the [[Hawaiian language|Hawaiian]] word for [[love]], [[affection]], [[peace]], [[compassion]] and [[mercy]], that is commonly used as a simple greeting.{{sfn|Pukui|1986|page=21}}{{sfn|Van Valkenburg|2012|page=69}}


The Aloha Spirit law became official in 1986.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20180422-in-hawaii-being-nice-is-the-law|title=In Hawaii, being nice is the law|first=Breena|last=Kerr|publisher=}}</ref>
The Aloha Spirit law became official in 1986.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20180422-in-hawaii-being-nice-is-the-law|title=In Hawaii, being nice is the law|first=Breena|last=Kerr|publisher=}}</ref>

Revision as of 01:49, 9 June 2018

Aloha (pronounced [əˈlōˌhä]) is the Hawaiian word for love, affection, peace, compassion and mercy, that is commonly used as a simple greeting.[1][2]

The Aloha Spirit law became official in 1986.[3]

Etymology

The origins of the Hawaiian word aloha are unclear.[4] The word goes back to the very origins of Hawaii to Kahiki (the homeland) and even further. The word is found in all Polynesian languages and always with the same basic meaning of: love, compassion, sympathy and kindness. Its beginnings may be seen in the Maori definition as "love of kin". Mary Kawena Pukui wrote that the "first expression" of aloha was between a parent and child.[4] The word has become a part of the English vocabulary in an awkward misuse.[5][6][7] The Oxford English Dictionary defines the word as a "greeting" like "welcome" and "farewell" using a number of examples dating back as far as 1798. The term has come, in many ways, to epitomize the appropriation of the Hawaiian Language and the cultural dispossession of Native Hawaiians.[5]

Lorrin Andrews wrote the first Hawaiian dictionary, called A dictionary of the Hawaiian language.[8] In it he describes aloha as "A word expressing different feelings; love, affection, gratitude, kindness, pity, compassion, grief, the modern common salutation at meeting; parting". Mary Kawena Pukui and Samuel Hoyt Elbert's Hawaiian Dictionary: Hawaiian-English, English-Hawaiian also contains a similar definition. Anthropologist Frances Newton states that "Aloha is a complex and profound sentiment. Such emotions defy definition".

Hawaiians believe the concept to be unique, with no English equivalent.[9]

See also

  • Mahalo
  • Ohana
  • Namaste, Peace, Salaam and Shalom have similar meanings.
  • Kenneth R. Conklin, Ph.D. (May 15, 2008). "The Aloha Spirit -- what it is, who possesses it, and why it is important". Hawaii Reporter.
  • Talofa

Citations

References