Pidgin
Being a kid is complicated. There are rules, most of them unwritten, unspoken even, and heaven help you if you can’t unlock the secret code. Darrell H.Y. Lum not only has the key to the boy’s room in his collection of short stories in Pass On, No Pass Back!, he also has the contraband cigarettes.
And maybe a little something else.
The title refers to a kids’ game I remember well: somebody punches you in the arm, yells, “Pass on, no pass back!” and you have to find someone else to slam and pass it on. The playground politics in who you hit and how hard would make the UN weep. And Lum gets it.
Better yet, he helps us get it.
To anyone who grew up in Hawai‘i, Lum’s characters feel real. There’s tales of da Bag Man, karate class, scouts, toads, and mongooses from hell that still give me chicken skin. The stories are written in Hawaiian Pidgin English, a welcome sound of home for native speakers that adds another layer of authenticity to his words. Non-Pidgin speakers will have a tougher time, but it’s worth the work.
As a bonus there are also the comic strip adventures of Booly, Bullette, and Burrito by Art Kodani.
If you’re looking for authentic island writing, Pass On, No Pass Back! is fantastic.
Pass On, No Pass Back! by Darrell H.Y. Lum is published by Bamboo Ridge Press and available as a trade paperback from the publisher, Amazon, and Barnes & Noble.
Holoholo
(HOH-loh-HOH-loh) (v) Pidgin for going out and finding some fun.
Example
English: “Lilinoe, let us get in your car and drive up and down main street and see what others are doing. Perhaps we can meet young men with whom we can converse.”
Pidgin: “Lili! We go holoholo!”
Note: ‘Ōlelo is a Hawaiian word meaning language, speech, word, etc. To see the current list of words, definitions, and usage please click on ‘Ōlelo Archive.
Talk story time, pau
for now. Sun sets on Piko
Point. Aloha pō.
~Uncle Kahana
For more character haiku click here.
junkalunka
(juhn-KAH-luhn-KAH) (adj) Pidgin description of something that is old, broken down, used up.
Example
English: Perhaps we should borrow your mother’s car since the road is steep and winding and your car tires are bald and the brakes are soft.
Pidgin: Pali road? In that junkalunka thing? No way!
Note: ‘Ōlelo is a Hawaiian word meaning language, speech, word, etc. To see the current list of words, definitions, and usage please click on ‘Ōlelo Archive.
daikon legs
(DYE-kon leh-eggs) (n) Pidgin description of legs that a short, fat, and white.
Example
English: “Interesting choice, Michi-san. Have you seen these floor-length prom dresses?”
Pidgin: “Michi, you blind? That mini shows off your daikon legs!”
Note: ‘Ōlelo is a Hawaiian word meaning language, speech, word, etc. To see the current list of words, definitions, and usage please click on ‘Ōlelo Archive.
Calabash
(cal-lah-BASH) A bowl or container often made of wood or a hollowed gourd. When used to refer to people, it implies a close friend or relative, i.e. someone so familiar he would eat out of the same serving bowl.
Example
English: “James is my father’s best friend’s son who grew up like a member of our family.”
Pidgin: “Jimmy? Calabash cousin.”
Note: ‘Ōlelo is a Hawaiian word meaning language, speech, word, etc. To see the current list of words, definitions, and usage please click on ‘Ōlelo Archive.
Sniff, lick, snort, tickle,
wag my tail in play, sly eye,
never show the truth.
~’Ilima
For more character haiku click here.
Kuleana
(koo-lee-ah-na) (nvt) Hawaiian word for right, privilege, concern, area of responsibility.
Example
English: “As responsible human beings we must take care of the earth! There are wastrels among us who must heed my words or our land will become a vast wasteland of corruption and filth where none can live! I call on you now to change your ways before it is too late!”
Pidgin: “What you mean, ‘not your kuleana?’ You breathing, right? You living, right? Taking care of the ‘āina is everybody’s kuleana, brah!”
Note: ‘Ōlelo is a Hawaiian word meaning language, speech, word, etc. To see the current list of words, definitions, and usage please click on ‘Ōlelo Archive.
Itchy wrist lei tight,
wiggle up ti leaf skirt, wait
for the drum beat. Dance.
~Char Siu
Futless
(FUHT-less) Adj. Pidgin for bored, frustrated, confused, unsure of what to do next. Literally without fart.
Example
English: Jay is so bored, he’s sitting in on the couch, flicking the blinds, and staring at telephone lines.
Pidgin: Ho, Jay futless, yeah?
Note: ‘Ōlelo is a Hawaiian word meaning language, speech, word, etc. To see the current list of words, definitions, and usage please click on ‘Ōlelo Archive.
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