kanaka
noun
a Native Hawaiian.
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kanaka
American
[kuh-nak-uh, -nah-kuh, kan-uh-kuh]
/ kəˈnæk ə, -ˈnɑ kə, ˈkæn ə kə /
noun
(sometimes initial capital letter)
-
a Native Hawaiian.
-
a South Sea islander.
Kanaka
British
/ kəˈnækə, ˈkænəkə /
noun
-
(esp in Hawaii) a native Hawaiian
-
(often not capital) any native of the South Pacific islands, esp (formerly) one abducted to work in Australia
Etymology
Origin of kanaka
From Hawaiian: “person”
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The kanaka of Hawaii, the Native Hawaiians who inhabit the islands, value ’ohana, which extends beyond the familial ties of blood.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 26, 2023
To most people in the state — Hawaiians and residents of the islands who are not kanaka maoli — these battles royal are hardly the main problem.
From Washington Post ● Sep. 16, 2022
Honestly, we kanaka don’t mind the moa so much.
From Washington Post ● Jun. 8, 2022
And somehow, kanaka maoli always seem to bear the brunt.
From Washington Post ● Jun. 8, 2022
Probably from the Sanscrit kan, to shine, desire, covet; kanaka, gold, &c.
From Notes and Queries, Number 210, November 5, 1853 A Medium of Inter-communication for Literary Men, Artists, Antiquaries, Genealogists, etc. by Bell, George
Kanaka elders have insisted that no more telescopes be built on Mauna Kea, which Native Hawaiians consider to be ancestral and sacred.
From Salon ● Aug. 21, 2024
Patrick Michell, chief of the Kanaka Bar First Nation, first began noticing worrying changes in the forest near his reserve in British Columbia, Canada, more than three decades ago.
From BBC ● Oct. 30, 2021
“Hopefully that’ll help keep some of these fires down,” he said, noting that another blaze ignited about a quarter-mile from the one in the Kanaka Valley on Friday morning, but it was already contained.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 10, 2021
The hikes: Easy walks through a coastal rain forest, waterfalls and sandstone cliffs await visitors at this wilderness park along the Kanaka Creek, just five miles from downtown Maple Ridge.
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 13, 2018
His fingers touched a wall, and following this he came to the end of a table where he stumbled over the body of a Kanaka.
From The Ice Pilot by Leverage, Henry
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
