When in Hawaii, speak as the Hawaiians. Here are some peculiarities of the language to help you. There are only 12 letters in the Hawaiian alphabet. Of these, A, E, I, O, U are vowels and H, K, L, M, N, P, W are consonants.
The vowels are pronounced thus: a as in father, e as in vein, i as in peep, o as in own, u as in blue, although sometimes u is pronounced as a w as in why. An ai together is pronounced as eye.
Every word must end in a vowel and every syllable must end in a vowel. Any number of vowels may be used together. Look at each and every letter and break down the syllables.
The consonants are pronounced thus: h as in hale, k as in Kate, l as in laid, m as in moon, n as is noon, p as in peak, w as in always.
No two consonants can be pronounced without at least one vowel between them. There is one exception to this rule, and it applies to a word introduced by the American missionaries - Kristo from "Christ."
Let's practice with a few common words:
A-lo-ha (Welcome, love)
Ma-ha-lo (Thank you)
Ma-ha-lo nu-i lo-a (Thank you very much)
Pu-pu (appetizer)
Ka-uai (u as a w) (Island's name)
Ka-pa-a (a town)
Ka-me-ha-me-ha (The great king's name)
