When you visit Hawaii, you may come across this gigantic word that starts with H and has a bazillion letters. That’s the word humuhumunukunukuapua’a and it’s Hawaii’s state fish. The humuhumunukunukuapua’a is a tropical reef trigger fish that you’ll likely see when you snorkel in Hawaii.
I used to think that I’d never be able to pronounce humuhumunukunukuapua’a, but it’s actually quite easy after you sound it out a time or two. Here’s how to pronounce it: “who-moo-who-moo-noo-koo-noo-koo-ah-pooah-ah” Easy, peasy, right? Okay, just in case it’s not slipping off your tongue, check out this link to a YouTube of Don Ho singing My Little Grass Shack. At about 1:10 into the video, you hear Don Ho singing humuhumunukunukuapua’a a few times. Sing along and you’ll soon be a pro.
One time I tried to register humuhumunukunukuapuaa.com as a domain name because I thought Kalanianaole@humuhumunukunukuapuaa.com would make a cool email address to tell people over the phone.
Unfortunately it’s already taken.
Already taken? That’s too funny!
Isn’t it such a feeling of accomplishment when you can finally say it!
Janet – it is, indeed!
FYI – I found out that the England’s Daily Mail referenced my post in this article: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1352753/Aquarium-staff-welcome-unprounceable-Hawaiian-arrival-Humuhumunukunukuapuaa.html?ito%3Dfeeds-newsxml
I don’t know where the heck everyone in Hawaii learn the word. I think it may be the mandatory Hawaiian Languange classes forced upon kids uselessly in Kindergarten and like 3th Grade. It just makes logical sense to me.
Maybe the frustration isn’t completely useless.
I won a trip to Maui by knowing the name of the fish and I knew the name because I learned the words to “Little Grass Shack” by Don Ho when I was a teenager.
On HBO Family, they play a story of how the “stripey-stripey-dashy-dashy-pig-face” got it’s name. That’s how I learned how to say it.
I actually learned it from the deleted song on High School Musical 2. lol
Special.
haha achually it isn’t dat hard for us ta say da state fish’s name
when u grow up round da language, culture and your whole family speaks nativly (even my howlie daddy throws some Hawaiian Slag here n there) it isn’t that hard to learn. Guess its jus like a russian speakin russian, or a mexican speaking and reading spanish.
As a kamaaina friend explained it to my howlie-self when I was stationed on the island: “Iss easy, brah! Two humus, two nukus, and apua’a. Membah dat and you be speakin’ da kine in no time.” Humu, humu, nuku, nuku, apua’a. Lidat. What a concept.