

Example: Hawaiian guy, “Hey brah, you still get da kine truck?” (the word da kine is often followed by a “da kine what?” Since it is used for everything, it really describes nothing.) Japanese Filipino guy, “Oh, you mean the Toyota? Yeah, I still get um, but the thing all buss up” (busted up, broken). Now the next level of pidgin can get complicated because of the addition of Hawaiian words.

If no can, no can”, which means, if I get to it, great, if not, no big deal. There is also pidgin philosophy, an example of which is “if can, can. You may have heard them before, like “da kine” and “howsit” (greeting- “how you doing”). Now of course there are the tried and true pidgin words known by locals and visitors alike. They both start laughing and the Japanese Filipino guy says “true that.” His cousins came and wen (re: they went and) throw him in the back of the truck. Also, adding “guys” to the end of any name means friends and family included) “Aw naah”, says the local Japanese Filipino guy, (by the way, everybody in Hawaii describes each other by their ethnic background) “I’m over south side now” “I stay cruzin the beach with Jimmy Boy guys” (if “Boy” is at the end of a name, it usually means that person is at least 2nd oldest in the family) “Aw Naaah” the Hawaiian guy loudly exclaims, “Jimmy Boy over there? Ho bra, that guys nutz! Last time I seen him he was all jagalag(drunk) and was pass out cold in the bushes. You still over with your mother guys?”(re: living with your mom. So this big local Hawaiian guy sees an old friend in a parking lot and says “Ho bruddah, howzit!” (they smash a handshake between their chests with a hug and a slap on the back) “I never see you plenty long time. I’ll substitute regular English so it’s more readable, but keep in mind it’s pronounced differently than spelled. (remember those?)Īnyway, I’ll attempt to give some examples of everyday pidgin in case you visit and have a chance to overhear some locals on the beach or in the stores. I know this because when my pidgin-speaking friends post on Facebook in pidgin, it reads like a badly broken typewriter. The translation of it is somewhat difficult though. When a local Hawaiian is speaking pidgin it usually is with a loud, high-pitched laugh. The different ethnic groups speak it differently also, so it’s a constantly evolving thing. Another 7 to pick up all the slang and another couple for all the jokes.
