ʻo au
The Hawaiian phrase for "I am" is ʻo au.
ʻo au is used to identify oneself or to state one's identity.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of the particle ʻo, which is used for identification and the pronoun au, meaning "I".
How does it change in a sentence?
The particle ʻo is used before a noun or name to indicate that the following word is the subject being identified.
Did you know?
- In Hawaiian, ʻo au is used for identity, but you cannot use it to say 'I am' when describing a feeling or a characteristic, such as 'I am happy'.
- The ʻo in ʻo au is an example of a glottal stop, represented by the ʻokina. This is a full consonant in Hawaiian and omitting it changes the word's meaning entirely.
- The word au is a distant relative of the word aku in Proto-Austronesian. This ancient root connects the Hawaiian 'I' to languages spoken across a vast region of Southeast Asia and the Pacific.
Examples in context
- ʻO wau ke kumuI am the teacher.
- ʻO wau ka wahineI am the woman.
- ʻO wau ke kāneI am the man.
- ʻO wau ke moʻopunaI am the grandchild.
- ʻO wau he peʻapeʻaI am a fly
- ʻO au ʻo Keanu.I am Keanu.
- ʻO au ke keiki.I am the child.
Example conversation
Two people meet at a community gathering.
- KeanuʻO Kiana ko ʻoe inoa?Is your name Kiana?
- KianaʻAe, ʻo au ʻo Kiana.Yes, I am Kiana.
- KeanuʻO Keanu koʻu inoa.My name is Keanu.
- KianaHauʻoli kēia e hui pū me ʻoe, Keanu.It is nice to meet you, Keanu.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries au, CC BY-SA 4.0.
