pīʻāpā
The Hawaiian word for alphabet is pīʻāpā.
pīʻāpā is used to refer to an ordered set of letters used in a language.
Meaning: an ordered set of letters used in a language (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
The word pīʻāpā is a loanword from the English word 'alphabet'.
Did you know?
- The 'okina, which looks like an inverted apostrophe, is often treated as a consonant within the pīʻāpā rather than just a punctuation mark.
- The current pīʻāpā was standardized by American missionaries in the 1820s to translate the Bible.
- Before the adoption of the pīʻāpā, the Hawaiian language was entirely oral and had no written form.
Examples in context
- E hoʻomaʻamaʻa i ka lipi Hawaiʻi ma kēia pule.Practice the Hawaiian alphabet this week.
- Aʻo i ka pīʻāpā hou.Learn the new alphabet.
- He mea nui ka pīʻāpā.The alphabet is important.
Example conversation
Kiana is helping Keanu study Hawaiian.
- KianaKeanu, ua aʻo ʻoe i ka pīʻāpā?Keanu, have you learned the alphabet?
- KeanuʻAe, akā he mea paʻakikī kēia pīʻāpā.Yes, but this alphabet is difficult.
- KianaE nānā pono i nā huaʻōlelo.Look closely at the letters.
- KeanuMahalo no kou kōkua, Kiana.Thank you for your help, Kiana.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “alphabet” translations and entries pīʻāpā, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
