"Hawaiian" Is the English Word for 'Ōlelo Hawai'i

There is no separate English translation for "Hawaiian." The word Hawaiian is the English name for the language whose endonym is 'Ōlelo Hawai'i.

Language Profile

• Family: Austronesian → Malayo-Polynesian → Oceanic → Polynesian → Eastern Polynesian → Hawaiian
• Closest relatives: Māori, Tahitian, Rapa Nui, Marquesan
• Writing system: Latin alphabet (13 letters: 5 vowels, 8 consonants) + 'okina (glottal stop) + kahakō (macron)
• Status: Critically endangered (UNESCO); ~2,000 native speakers; ~24,000 total speakers (2016)

Pacific Language Context

Hawaiian sits alongside Samoan, Tongan, Tahitian, Māori, Tagalog, Chamorro, Marshallese, Chuukese — all Austronesian, but distinct languages, not dialects.

Southeast Asian Links?

Some researchers note ancient Austronesian substrate similarities (Philippines, Taiwan, Indonesia) — but these are deep phylogenetic echoes, not borrowings. Hawaiian's closest kin are Polynesian.

Bottom Line

Hawaiian = English name. 'Ōlelo Hawai'i = Native name. Same language. No translation needed.