mālama pono
The Hawaiian phrase for "take care" is mālama pono.
mālama pono is used as a parting expression when saying goodbye, similar to saying "take care" or "be well" in English.
Meaning: good-bye (intj)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of mālama, meaning to care for, protect or preserve and pono, meaning right, correct or truly. Literally, it translates to "care well" or "take care truly".
Did you know?
- The word pono shares a distant, likely accidental, linguistic ancestor with the Malay word 'benar', which also means 'true'.
- The root mālama is used not only for people but also for the environment, such as mālama ʻāina, the duty to care for the land.
- Because pono implies being 'in a right state', saying mālama pono is effectively wishing for the listener to remain in a state of spiritual and physical equilibrium.
Examples in context
- Mālama pono.Take care.
Example conversation
Noelani and Kai are parting ways after a lunch date.
- NoelaniA hui hou, Kai.See you again, Kai.
- KaiA hui hou, Noelani. Mālama pono.See you again, Noelani. Take care.
- NoelaniMahalo, e mālama pono.Thank you, take care.
- KaiAloha!Aloha!
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries pono, CC BY-SA 4.0.
