Aloha
/əˈloʊ.hə/noun
A Hawaiian greeting, farewell, and expression of love, compassion, and affection.
Did you know?In Hawaiian, aloha is often linked to a + lō + ha, traditionally understood as the presence of breath or life force shared between people, which is why it can mean far more than a casual greeting.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Polynesian
PPN
*qaliqa / *aroha
“A feeling of compassion, pity, love, or sympathy in related Polynesian languages and ancestral forms”
Hawaiian
Hawaiian
aloha
“Affection, compassion, love, sympathy; also used as hello and goodbye”
19th Century
English
aloha
“Borrowed from Hawaiian as a greeting and expression of Hawaiian culture”
Modern English
English
aloha
“A Hawaiian greeting or farewell, and a broader expression of love and welcome”