mea ola
The Hawaiian word for survivor is mea ola.
mea ola is used to refer to one who survives.
Meaning: one who survives (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
The term is composed of mea, meaning 'thing' or 'person' and ola, meaning 'life' or 'living'. Literally, it translates to 'one who is living' or 'a living thing'.
Did you know?
- In Hawaiian, ola is used in the phrase E ola mau, which translates to 'live on' or 'be immortal', often used as a patriotic cry.
- Because ola is used for both 'life' and 'health', the word for 'survivor' and 'healthy person' share the same core root.
- The term ola is closely related to the Hawaiian concept of 'healing', meaning the act of surviving is linguistically tied to the act of recovering.
Example conversation
Keanu and Kiana are discussing a story about a storm.
- KeanuHe mea ola anei ʻo ia?Is he a survivor?
- KianaʻAe, he mea ola ʻo ia.Yes, he is a survivor.
- KeanuKūpono kēlā.That is appropriate.
- KianaHe mana nui kona.He has great power.
