wahine hiʻu iʻa
/waˈhi.ne ˈhi.ʔu ˈi.ʔa/word by word
The Hawaiian word for mermaid is wahine hiʻu iʻa.
The term refers to a mythological woman possessing the tail of a fish.
Meaning: mythological woman with a fish’s tail (noun)
Is it said differently in some regions?
On the island of Kauai, the term Mo'o Wahine may be used to describe a mermaid.
How do you pronounce it?
The word has 7 syllables: /waˈhi.ne ˈhi.ʔu ˈi.ʔa/. The stress is on the second syllable.
Did you know?
- While wahine hiʻu iʻa refers to a fish-tailed mermaid, the term Mo'o Wahine describes a mermaid as a female lizard or dragon, reflecting the deep importance of the mo'o spirit in Hawaiian folklore.
- The word hiʻu for 'tail' shares an ancient ancestor with the word for 'elbow'.
- In Hawaiian culture, the mo'o often serves as a guardian of fishponds and freshwater pools, blending the identity of a mermaid with that of a territorial protector.
Example sentences for Hawaiian are not verified yet.
Example conversation
Kiana and Kai are reading a book of myths together.
- KianaHe nani ka wahine hiʻu iʻa ma kēia kiʻi.The mermaid in this picture is beautiful.
- KaiʻAe, akā ʻaʻole ia he mea maoli.Yes, but she is not a real thing.
- KianaMakemake au e lilo i wahine hiʻu iʻa.I want to become a mermaid.
- KaiHiki pū ʻike iā ʻoe ke ʻau i ke kai.You can just swim in the ocean.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “mermaid” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (wahine, hiʻu, iʻa) and can differ in connected speech.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries hiʻu, iʻa, wahine, CC BY-SA 4.0.
