Akua
/əˈku.ə/noun
In Hawaiian, a deity, spirit, supernatural being, or god, including the Christian God in some contexts.
Did you know?Hawaiian akua is related to Polynesian words such as Māori atua and Samoan atua, reflecting a widespread ancestral concept of supernatural beings rather than one single god.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Polynesian
Proto-Polynesian
*atua
“A god, spirit, or supernatural being; reconstructed ancestor of related Polynesian forms.”
Early Polynesian
Polynesian
atua
“A deity or powerful supernatural being in ancestral Polynesian religious vocabulary.”
Traditional Hawaiian
Hawaiian
akua
“A god, deity, spirit, ghost, or supernatural power; the initial consonant reflects regular Hawaiian sound change from ancestral *t.”
18th–19th Century
Hawaiian
Akua
“A term used in Hawaiian religious and Christian contexts for a god or divine being.”
Modern English
English
akua
“A Hawaiian cultural and religious term referring to a deity, spirit, or supernatural being.”