Jul 8th, 2008
The Shaka Sign
When you visit Hawaii, I hope you’ll get a shaka directed towards you. Why? This hand signal is a kind gesture. Much unlike the middle finger salute, you actually want to get a shaka. The shaka is used in Hawaii to express several different meanings. Here’s some of them:
- Hello
- Goodbye
- Aloha
- Thank you
- Take Care
- Take It Easy
- I Like This Situation/Place
To make a shaka, extend your thumb and pinkie while curling in the index and middle fingers. You can also rotate your wrist, too.
I remember when we got our first shaka in Hawaii. We were enjoying the drive on the road to Hana. We looked in the rearview mirror and noticed a pickup truck following behind us. We assumed this folks in the truck were local residents and weren’t on a sight-seeing mission like us. So, at our first opportunity, we pulled over to let the truck pass by us. As the truck passed, the passenger gave us a shaka. (By the way, local residents will always appreciate you pulling over to allow them to pass if you are driving slow. You’ll find that tip and more on how to be a polite visitor in Hawaii.)
The true origin of the shaka is a bit of a mystery. There are several stories that Wikipedia includes. The story I was told is a slight variation of what Wikipedia lists. I was told that the shaka was born in Laie on Oahu by a man who had lost his index and two other middle fingers in an accident. He stood along the road in Laie waving at people and cars as they passed by. He was encouraging them to visit the Polynesian Cultural Center. People didn’t know that this friendly fellow had lost his fingers and they would wave back trying to repeat the hand sign. Have you heard this story or others?
Hopefully you’ll adopt this nice hand gesture when you visit Hawaii. I love offering a sincere shaka when the situation calls for it. It’s also fun to do a shaka for photographs of places you especially enjoyed. Do you use the shaka in Hawaii? Do you have an interesting shaka story? Please share it.
Enjoyed this post? Subscribe by RSS or email and get daily updates!
Save & Share: 
6 Responses to “The Shaka Sign”
The most common use of a shaka everyday on Oahu is when you say “Thank You” to another driver for allowing you to cut in front of them in traffic.
Here’s a nice “Shaka PSA”
http://www.808talk.com/2008/03/04/the-many-types-of-shakas/
Here is a brief story about the origin of the shaka:
http://starbulletin.com/2002/03/31/news/kokualine.html
There is an official proclamation in the BYU Hawaii Pacific Studies room in Laie written by the Mayor of Honolulu, Frank Fasi, proclaiming Hamana Kalili of Laie to be the official originator of the shaka sign.
@ VBrown That’s a nice way to say thanks. When we do the shaka in Hawaii on vacation, it’s usually in a traffic situation. I should probably warn folks that that PSA is probably PG rated.
@ Chris - I really liked this quote from that article: “I think he meant shake it up, buddy. How’s it going? Aloha. Have a good day. All those good meanings. It just meant a world of goodness.” You gotta love a hand gesture that means all those things!
This is great information for travelers that want to fit in with the locals.
We just have to make sure to tell them to rmove all the cameras from around their nek and put the map down.
GOH - yeah…I think sometimes people spend too much time behind the camera.
@Chris thanks for the article!