Hawaiian Last Name Generator
Hawaiian family names with ʻokina and kahakō
Generate Hawaiian last names such as Kealoha, Kahananui, Kamakana, Kanahele, Keawe, Nākoa, Makuakāne and Akana. These are Hawaiian-language family names, written with the ʻokina and kahakō where the spelling is well established.
About Hawaiian last names
Inherited last names are a fairly recent custom in Hawaiʻi. Traditionally a person carried one name, an inoa, often a phrase that marked an event, a place, an ancestor or a hope. That changed in 1860, when a law signed by Kamehameha IV required children to take their father's name as a family name and a wife to take her husband's. Many Hawaiian surnames are therefore the personal name of a nineteenth-century ancestor.
Ka and Ke both mean the, so Kahale is the house, Kealoha the love, Kanahele the forest and Kapule the prayer. Nā is the plural form (Nākoa, the warriors), Keliʻi and Kealiʻi mean the chief, and the prefix Hoʻo means to cause or to make. Other names are Hawaiian forms of foreign ones: Wakinekona is Washington, Kelekolio is Gregory, and Akana, Ahuna and Apana grew out of Chinese given names.
The ʻokina (a glottal stop) and the kahakō (a long vowel) are part of the spelling, as in Kaʻaihue or Makuakāne. This list uses them where the spelling is well established and leaves them out elsewhere, as many families do. Many families in Hawaiʻi carry Chinese, Japanese, Portuguese or Filipino surnames; those are not in this list.
How to choose Hawaiian last names
- The ʻokina is a letter, not an apostrophe, and the kahakō changes how a vowel sounds. Keep both when you can. If a form or a font cannot show them, the usual fallback is to leave them out.
- Sound every vowel. Kealoha has four syllables (keh-ah-LOH-hah), and an ʻokina is a short break in the voice, like the one in the middle of uh-oh.
- Do not shy away from length. Kamakawiwoʻole and Kealiʻikanakaʻoleohaililani are real family names, and a long surname can set a character apart at once.
- For a character, an English or biblical first name with a Hawaiian surname fits the history, as with the historian Samuel Kamakau or the scholar Mary Kawena Pukui. A Hawaiian middle name is common too.
- In Hawaiian tradition a name carries mana and belongs to a family. These names are fine for fiction and games, but ask before you borrow a living family's name for a business or a brand.
Frequently asked questions
What are some well-known Hawaiian last names?
Names you are likely to meet in Hawaiʻi include Kealoha, Kahale, Kalani, Kalama, Kamaka, Keawe, Kanahele and Kekoa. All of them are in this list. We do not rank names by how common they are, because we have no reliable figures.
Did Hawaiians always have last names?
No. Traditionally a person had a single name, and nothing was passed from parent to child as a surname. An 1860 law of the Hawaiian Kingdom made the father's name the family name, so many surnames today began as one ancestor's personal name.
Why do so many Hawaiian last names start with K?
Ka and Ke are the two forms of the word the, and many personal names were phrases that opened with it: Kahale (the house), Kapule (the prayer), Kealoha (the love). The Hawaiian alphabet also has only eight consonants, so K simply turns up often. Names that start with Nā use the plural form of the same word.
Are all last names in Hawaii Hawaiian?
No. Many families in the islands carry surnames from China, Japan, Portugal, the Philippines and elsewhere, and this list leaves those out. It does include names such as Akana, Ahuna and Apana, which took shape in Hawaiʻi when Chinese given names were written the Hawaiian way. Confirm a spelling with a family that carries the name before you rely on it.
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All 500 Hawaiian last names
A: 47 names
- Aea
- Ahakuelo
- Ahia
- Ahina
- Aholo
- Ahue
- Ahuna
- Aikala
- Aikau
- Aila
- Aina
- Ainoa
- Aiona
- Aipa
- Aipoalani
- Aipolani
- Aiu
- Akaka
- Akana
- Akau
- Akina
- Akiona
- Ako
- Akui
- Akuna
- Alama
- Alapa
- Alapaʻi
- Alohikea
- Aluli
- Amona
- Anahu
- Anakalea
- Aona
- Apaka
- Apana
- Apiki
- Apo
- Apoliona
- Apuakehau
- Apuna
- Auna
- Auwae
- Awai
- Awana
- Aweau
- Aʻarona
E: 3 names
- Eleneki
- Ena
- Ewaliko
H: 41 names
- Haia
- Haili
- Hakuole
- Halama
- Hale
- Haleamau
- Halemano
- Halemanu
- Haleʻole
- Halualani
- Hanaike
- Hanapī
- Hanawahine
- Hanoa
- Hanohano
- Hauanio
- Haumea
- Haʻalilio
- Haʻo
- Helekahi
- Helekunihi
- Heleluhe
- Helenihi
- Hewahewa
- Hiona
- Hoapili
- Hokoana
- Holi
- Holokahi
- Holokai
- Holomalia
- Hoʻohuli
- Hoʻokala
- Hoʻokano
- Hoʻolulu
- Hoʻomalu
- Hoʻomanawanui
- Hoʻopai
- Hoʻopiʻi
- Hueu
- Huihui
I: 4 names
- Iaea
- Iaukea
- Ilalaole
- Iopa
K: 245 names
- Kahaialiʻi
- Kahakai
- Kahakalau
- Kahale
- Kahalehoe
- Kahalekai
- Kahalepuna
- Kahaleuahi
- Kahanamoku
- Kahananui
- Kahapea
- Kahaunaele
- Kahawaiolaʻa
- Kahāʻulelio
- Kahele
- Kahiapo
- Kaholokula
- Kahoʻohalahala
- Kahoʻohanohano
- Kahoʻokano
- Kahoʻokele
- Kahoʻonei
- Kahoʻopiʻi
- Kahuanui
- Kahue
- Kahumoku
- Kaiahua
- Kaialau
- Kaiama
- Kaiaokamalie
- Kaiawe
- Kaikala
- Kaili
- Kailiawa
- Kailimai
- Kailiwai
- Kaina
- Kainoa
- Kaio
- Kakalia
- Kalahele
- Kalahiki
- Kalai
- Kalalau
- Kalama
- Kalani
- Kalaniopio
- Kalanui
- Kalawaiʻa
K, continued
- Kalawe
- Kalehuawehe
- Kaleikini
- Kaleimamahu
- Kaleiwahea
- Kaleohano
- Kaleopaʻa
- Kalepa
- Kalili
- Kalilikāne
- Kalilimoku
- Kalima
- Kalipi
- Kalua
- Kaluau
- Kaluhiokalani
- Kaluhiwa
- Kaluna
- Kamae
- Kamahele
- Kamaiopili
- Kamaka
- Kamakahi
- Kamakana
- Kamakau
- Kamakawiwoʻole
- Kamakea
- Kamakeʻeʻāina
- Kamaliʻi
- Kamanā
- Kamanaʻo
- Kamau
- Kamaunu
- Kamauoha
- Kamauʻu
- Kamealoha
- Kamekona
- Kamelamela
- Kamohoaliʻi
- Kamoku
- Kanahele
- Kanakanui
- Kanakaʻole
- Kanaʻiaupuni
- Kāne
- Kaneaiakala
- Kāneakua
- Kanealiʻi
- Kanehailua
K, continued
- Kanehe
- Kanekoa
- Kaniaupio
- Kaniho
- Kanoho
- Kanuha
- Kanui
- Kaohelauliʻi
- Kaohi
- Kaohimaunu
- Kaopuiki
- Kapahu
- Kapahulehua
- Kapanui
- Kapaona
- Kapeliela
- Kapu
- Kapule
- Kapuni
- Kapuniai
- Kauahi
- Kauahikaua
- Kauakahi
- Kauanui
- Kauhane
- Kauhaʻahaʻa
- Kauhi
- Kaui
- Kauinana
- Kaulia
- Kaulili
- Kaulukou
- Kaulukukui
- Kaululaʻau
- Kaumeheiwa
- Kaunamano
- Kaupiko
- Kauwe
- Kauwenaole
- Kawaiʻaeʻa
- Kawānanakoa
- Kawaʻa
- Kawaʻakoa
- Kawaʻauhau
- Kawelo
- Kaʻahanui
- Kaʻai
- Kaʻaihue
- Kaʻalakea
K, continued
- Kaʻapana
- Kaʻapuni
- Kaʻauamo
- Kaʻauwai
- Kaʻauʻa
- Kaʻawa
- Kaʻelemakule
- Kaʻimikaua
- Kaʻōnohi
- Kaʻōpua
- Kaʻupu
- Keahiolalo
- Keakealani
- Kealakaʻi
- Kealamakia
- Keale
- Kealiʻikanakaʻoleohaililani
- Kealiʻinohomoku
- Kealiʻiwahamana
- Kealoha
- Keanaʻāina
- Keanini
- Keau
- Keaulana
- Keaunui
- Keawe
- Keaweamahi
- Keawehawaiʻi
- Keawekāne
- Keawemauhili
- Keaweʻehu
- Kehano
- Kekahuna
- Kekaualua
- Kekaula
- Kekauoha
- Kekela
- Kekoa
- Kekona
- Kekoʻolani
- Kekua
- Kekuewa
- Kekuku
- Kekumano
- Kekuna
- Kelekolio
- Kelekoma
- Keliʻiaʻa
- Keliʻihananui
K, continued
- Keliʻihoʻomalu
- Keliʻikipi
- Keliʻikuli
- Keliʻinoi
- Keliʻinui
- Keliʻipio
- Keliʻipuleʻole
- Kenoi
- Keoho
- Keohokālole
- Keohokapu
- Keohuloa
- Keolanui
- Keomaka
- Kepaʻa
- Kepoʻo
- Kia
- Kiaha
- Kiakona
- Kiaʻāina
- Kikiloi
- Kila
- Kilauano
- Kinimaka
- Kipapa
- Koanui
- Koko
- Konanui
- Koʻomoa
- Kuahulu
- Kuaiwa
- Kualiʻi
- Kuamoʻo
- Kuanoni
- Kuaʻana
- Kuhaulua
- Kuikahi
- Kukea
- Kukona
- Kuloloio
- Kuluwaimaka
- Kumalae
- Kumukahi
- Kunewa
- Kuoha
- Kupahu
- Kupau
- Kupihea
- Kupukaʻa
L: 12 names
- Laeha
- Laimana
- Lalakea
- Lapilio
- Laʻanui
- Lono
- Lua
- Luahine
- Lukela
- Lupenui
- Luʻuloa
- Luʻuwai
M: 42 names
- Mahaulu
- Mahelona
- Mahi
- Mahikoa
- Mahiʻai
- Māhoe
- Mahuiki
- Mahuka
- Mahuna
- Maielua
- Maikui
- Makaimoku
- Makainai
- Makaiwi
- Makalena
- Makanani
- Makaneole
- Makanui
- Makini
- Makua
- Makuakāne
- Makuaʻole
- Malaikini
- Malama
- Malo
- Manini
- Manoha
- Manoi
- Manuia
- Manuwai
- Maunakea
- Maunupau
- Maʻa
- Mehau
- Meheula
- Moanauli
- Mokiao
- Moku
- Mokuahi
- Mokuau
- Momoa
- Moʻokini
N: 37 names
- Naeʻole
- Nahale-a
- Nahaolelua
- Nahinu
- Nahoʻopiʻi
- Naihe
- Nakanelua
- Nakapaʻahu
- Nakaula
- Nakaʻahiki
- Nakea
- Naki
- Nākoa
- Nakoʻoka
- Nakuina
- Naleieha
- Nalimu
- Naluai
- Namahoe
- Namakelua
- Namauʻu
- Namuo
- Napeahi
- Napihaʻa
- Nauka
- Naumu
- Nāwahī
- Nawahine
- Nawai
- Nawaʻa
- Naʻauao
- Naʻope
- Niau
- Niheu
- Nihipali
- Nihoa
- Nuʻuhiwa
O: 6 names
- Ohai
- Ohelo
- Ohia
- Oneha
- Onekea
- Opunui
P: 52 names
- Pa
- Pahinui
- Pahio
- Pahukoa
- Pahukula
- Pai
- Paikai
- Paikuli
- Pakele
- Pākī
- Palakiko
- Palama
- Paleka
- Palenapa
- Pali
- Panui
- Paoa
- Paulo
- Pauole
- Paʻaluhi
- Paʻaoʻao
- Peahi
- Peleioholani
- Peʻa
- Peʻelua
- Pia
- Pihana
- Piho
- Pililaʻau
- Piʻianaiʻa
- Piʻikoi
- Piʻilani
- Poaha
- Poepoe
- Poha
- Pokipala
- Pu
- Pualoa
- Puaoi
- Puaʻa
- Puhi
- Pukahi
- Pukui
- Pule
- Puleloa
- Punihaole
- Punikaiʻa
- Puniwai
- Punohu
- Punua
- Puou
- Puʻuohau
U: 2 names
- Uwekoʻolani
- Uʻu