Congratulations on your choice to learn the Hawaiian language! Over the years, interest has sparked in the Hawaiian language and now there are some fun apps, websites, videos, and books to help people learn the Hawaiian language. As someone from Hawaii, I’ve finally made the decision to officially learn the Hawaiian Language and speak it more fluently (I’ve always understood more of it than I could speak it). I took two years of Hawaiian language in high school and one semester in college, so I was able to evaluate these resources based on my own knowledge and personal preference.

Most of these resources I use (or have used in the past), meaning that I wouldn’t recommend something that doesn’t work! One or more of these should help you, especially if you are only beginning your Hawaiian language journey. Even better, some of them are free! I also added some ideas for intermediate and advanced Hawaiian language speakers.

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you decide to purchase any of these resources, I earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. Read more about it here.

Hawaiian Language Apps

Duolingo – Hawaiian Language

This FREE app has always been an amazing language learning tool. With the friendly face of the owl and only 15 minutes a day, Duolingo is a fantastic resource. As someone who is a little more advanced, it’s nice to be able to “test out” of some of the courses on Duolingo and skip ahead. There are ads after each lesson with the option of upgrading to Premium for a fee. I love the community page too, where I connect with my family to keep accountable and challenge one another.

Check out Duolingo here!

Drop – Hawaiian Language

Another FREE app, Drop allows 5 minutes sessions of language learning a day. You can get extra time by upgrading to Premium. I’ve only used this app for a short time but I really enjoy dragging and dropping things. It sort of relaxes my brain, like I’m playing a game instead of “learning a language.” I also loved the wide range of vocabulary and selection of scenarios (health, finance, travel, animals, time, etc).

Check out Drop here.

Hawaiian Language Videos

Ka Leo ‘Ōiwi

My Hawaiian language teacher in college used these very videos to teach us! They are super informative, easy to watch, and they go at a really comfortable pace. For beginners, it’s nice to learn grammar structure and words. For intermediate and advanced, it’s nice to use these videos to review.

Check out Ka Leo ‘Ōiwi here.

Speak Hawaiian Now

What better way to learn Hawaiian from the locals themselves? Lokelani and Ka’analike are so fun, warm, and quick as they teach the Hawaiian language. Though they have few videos up, so I hope they keep going!

Check out Speak Hawaiian Now here.

Hawaiian Language Learning Books

The Hawaiian Dictionary

A dictionary always comes in handy when learning a new language! This dictionary trumps all the rest, as it was compiled by two of Hawaii’s greatest historians and recorders, Mary Kawena Pukui and Samuel H. Elbert. With this Hawaiian dictionary, there’s really no need to find or get any others. Of course it might not have updated terminology like kamipuela (computer), but it’s pretty complete.

Get the Hawaiian Dictionary here.

I’m not impressed with the selection of Hawaiian language learning books

To be completely honest, there are Hawaiian grammar and language learning books out there but I’ve never really found one that was helpful for me. Many of them say “beginner,” but have vague concepts and usually share more vocab words than any grammar techniques. So I can’t really recommend any books, but if I do find some that are helpful, I’ll be sure to come back and update this! And if you have any suggestions, leave them in the comments below for me and others to check out!

Books Translated into the Hawaiian Language

This is a brilliant idea for intermediate and advanced Hawaiian language speakers. Some popular titles have been translated into the Hawaiian language, and a side-by-side read of these books with the English versions can really help. Reading my scriptures in a different language has always helped me learn languages faster too(side note: I used to speak and read Japanese, and am fluent in Tagalog)!

Harry Potter & The Sorcerer’s Stone

What better way to learn Hawaiian than by reading Harry Potter? I was so excited to find out that this was translated into the Hawaiian language. I’m eager to get my hands on a copy! Get the Hawaiian version of the book here.

The Adventures of Alice in Wonderland

This book was translated by the same person who translated Harry Potter. As not everything translates perfectly, he took some liberties in his version. I look forward to reading this! Get the Hawaiian version of the book here.

Other General Resources

I haven’t tried any of these, but I thought it might be worth mentioning, especially since we all learn differently than one another!

‘Olelo Online

I didn’t really dig into this website, but it does look like it has a lot of content along with downloadable PDFs, structured lessons, and more. Check out ‘Olelo Online here.

italki

The idea is that you can speak with a native speaker on this website. However, when I checked there weren’t any native Hawaiian speakers. So this might be a good resource for advanced and fluent Hawaiian speakers to use their skills to help others trying to learn. Check out italki here.

Fluent in 3 Months

I haven’t personally tried this but the idea does intrigue me. Someone can hold a 30 minute conversation in another language in only 3 months? Tell me more. 🙂 If I do take this course, I will come back and update this! Check out Fluent in 3 Months here.

That’s a wrap, for now! I hope one or more of these resources will help you get started on your Hawaiian language journey. If there are any resources that you’ve absolutely loved or found helpful on your Hawaiian language journey, please share by commenting below. We’d all be grateful for your kokua!

Mahalo and best of luck on your journey!

Lei

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