hapa

[ hah-puh ]

noun

1. (especially in Hawaii and California) a person of mixed-race heritage who identifies racially and culturally as both white and of Asian descent.

Word History and Origins

Origin of hapa¹

First recorded in 1985–90; from Hawaiian Pidgin: “half”

Example Sentences

Hapa-haole,” was the answer; “he was a half-caste, you know, and we of the Islands have to think about our children.

From Project Gutenberg

Allowing for the variation in the spelling of native names, we can here recognise the Hapa of the Spaniards.

From Project Gutenberg

"Hapa," he whispered, as he carefully climbed down and indicated with his hand that they were near.

From Project Gutenberg

We named it Santa Anna; it is called Hapa in the language of the natives.

From Project Gutenberg

But he did not know it, nor did anybody else guess it except that cursed hapa-haole, Stephen Kaluna.

From Project Gutenberg