Ka Leka o Ka Pule
A weekly newsletter for anyone learning Hawaiian language. Each issue covers practical lessons on words, expressions, and sentence structures, alongside cultural insights and real stories from the community. This newsletter aims to help you build language skills influenced by native speakers, one issue at a time.
Maui and the ka La
Aloha no kakou,
Maui was speaking with his mother Hina, who shared about the difficulty of making kapa. She would go through the strenuous work of making it and finally kaulai (hang dry) it, only to find that after a day, a week, even a whole month, "aole e maloo" (it would not dry). The length o...
Aug 06, 2026
Maui and the Alae Ula
Aloha no kakou,
Maui makes his journey to Waianae, Oahu, in search of ahi (fire). There he comes across a group of Alae gathered around a flaming fire. Seeing his opportunity, Maui moved to hopu (grab) one of them.
The Alae scrambled and lele (took flight) to escape, all except one who was not so...
Jul 16, 2026
Maui: A Hawaiian Demigod
Aloha mai,
Tomorrow the live action film of Moana releases. When Moana came out in 2016, I was part of many conversations with friends and family. A lot of people were learning for the first time that Maui the demigod is a legend found across many Polynesian islands.
This week I thought I would p...
Jul 10, 2026
Maui no ka oi! What It Really Means
Aloha e ka poe kanaka o Maui,
I wanted to talk about the phrase Maui no ka oi in hopes of shedding some light on it and helping people avoid misusing it.
Ina malihini oe i keia olelo (if you're unfamiliar with this phrase), here are some things to know. It is a phrase about the island of Maui and...
Jul 03, 2026
The Word You Never Want to Be Called
Aloha e ka poe heluhelu,
Sorry for missing last Wednesday. I was sick in bed all week. Something must be going around.
Once I recovered, I met with a student for some online tutoring. During our session she asked about the word hookano. We use this word for people who think they are superior to o...
Jun 25, 2026
Niihau: Alive and Well
Aloha mai,
Mahalo to all of you who joined Ka Punana. This week's lesson covers the proper pronunciation of the word aloha. It is a word many use and many think they know how to say, but I have learned otherwise as a kumu. Please take time to record your pronunciation, compare it to mine, and mak...
Jun 11, 2026
Olelo at Home
This week's newsletter comes from a question sent in by one of our readers. She is a homeschool mom with young children looking for ways to teach olelo Hawaii at home, keep her kids connected to Hawaiian culture, and find resources suited for young learners. Her situation is one I imagine many of...
Jun 04, 2026
Ka Punana: What's Inside
June 1st is here!
Mahalo to everyone who responded to last week's newsletter. There were a lot of you and I have gone through most of your responses. I hear you, and what you shared helped shape what I built.
I am calling it Ka Punana, the nest. Ka Alala (Hawaiian crow) is my logo, and ka punana ...
Jun 01, 2026
He ninau ka'u ia oukou
Aloha e ka poe heluhelu,
On June 1st I'm launching a new subscription with weekly lessons and material for learners. As I put it together, one thing I keep coming back to is this: what helps people actually retain and use what they learn? I'd love your input on that, and I'll explain why in a mom...
May 28, 2026
Kilo vs Nana?
Aloha mai,
June 1st I'm launching a new opportunity to learn olelo! I'll be teaching pronunciation, word choice, how to use phrases, and even how to sing some Hawaiian songs. It's just around the corner so don't miss it!Â
I continue to hear people use the word kilo like it’s going out of style a...
May 21, 2026
dictionary
hawaiianwords
kilo
nana
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Manao: What else does it mean?
Aloha mai!
Are you familiar with the word manao? Most people know that it means idea or thought. I often hear people say, “I appreciate you sharing your manao with us” or “What’s the manao of the day.”Â
That’s what most people know. What almost nobody knows is that we use manao to mean intent or ...
May 14, 2026
intention
manao
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Ua hoi mai no au — I'm back!
I've been MIA for almost a year. For those who used to read this newsletter, I just wanted to say — I'm back!
For the past year I was working for a non-profit that took up a lot of my time and energy and I couldn’t continue with Ka Alala. As of this month, I’m 100% back! If you follow me on socia...
May 11, 2026
Ka Leka o Ka Pule
