‘O Pepeluali ka Mahina ‘Ōlelo Hawai‘i! (February is Hawaiian Language Month!)
Aloha Kākou Collective ‘Ohana! We are so excited to kick of ka Mahina ‘Ōlelo Hawai‘i with a fun collaboration with Zippy’s and E Ho‘opili Mai! If you missed our blog on the new keiki menu that we helped to design, check it out here.
This month, you’ll probably see a lot of local businesses advertising in ‘Ōlelo Hawai‘i. While we love that people are promoting Hawaiian language, we want to emphasize ways in which we can incorporate ‘Ōlelo Hawai‘i into our everyday life and normalize its widespread usage all year long! After all, it was just about forty years ago when ‘Ōlelo Hawai‘i faced near extinction. Back in 1983, only fifty minors were fluent in Hawaiian language! Auwe!
Thankfully, since then there has been a revitalization of Hawaiian culture. ‘Ōlelo Hawai‘i began being taught in public schools and the language became officially recognized in the state. In 2013, Governor Neil Abercrombie signed Act 28 to officially make the month of February Hawaiian Language Month, and the document was the first of its kind to be transliterated in both Hawaiian and English! To learn more about ka Mahina ‘Ōlelo Hawai‘i, check out our previous blog where we dive in deeper to the history behind it.
This month, we are going to be focusing on fun ways to surround ourselves with ‘Ōlelo Hawai‘i. Why not take a free online course on the basics of ‘Ōlelo Hawai‘i to get started? Or how about challenging yourself to take a few minutes each day this month to learn a new word in Hawaiian and practice hand-lettering it? Fun, creative, and a cool way to learn! Lastly, if you’re looking to spread some of the ka Mahina ‘Ōlelo Hawai‘i fun this month, consider sending one of our lovely Special Occasion Greeting Cards. They’re a beautiful way of including a little piece of art and ‘Ōlelo Hawai‘i in life’s daily celebrations!
We hope to see you at one of this month’s pop-up events, but if not, make sure to subscribe to our Hap-E-Mail list so you can always get the latest scoop on where we will be and on the new drops headed your way!
A hui hou! (Until next time)
Mahalo to the resources used for this article:
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Kamanā, Lia. “February Is Mahina ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi, Hawaiian Language Month.”KITV Island News, KITV4, 27 Jan. 2023, https://www.kitv.com/news/local/february-is-mahina-lelo-hawai-i-hawaiian-language-month/article_9da2a940-9e8e-11ed-93f5-372a0fdea8af.html.
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Kontos, Athina. “February Marks the Tenth Anniversary of Hawaiian Language Month.”February Marks the Tenth Anniversary of Hawaiian Language Month, Language Magazine, 20 Feb. 2023, www.languagemagazine.com/2023/02/20/february-marks-the-tenth-anniversary-of-hawaiian-language-month/.
