How to Say "Hummingbird" in Hawaiian: ʻŌʻō

The Hawaiian word for hummingbird is ʻōʻō (pronounced oh-oh with glottal stops). It's a collective term—not one species—referring to the various hummingbird-like honeycreepers (family Drepanididae) endemic to Hawaiʻi, such as the ʻiʻiwi, ʻapapane, and the now-extinct ʻōʻō (Moho spp.).

Note: True hummingbirds (Trochilidae) are not native to Hawaiʻi. The nectar-feeding honeycreepers filled that ecological niche. "ʻŌʻō" honors their role as pollinators and their place in Hawaiian chant and hula.