Naming Who Someone Is

Level 1

Put ʻo before a name to say who someone is.

How It Works

ʻO marks a name or the pronoun ia when they are the subject of a sentence that says who someone is.

PatternMeaning
ʻO Malia kēia.This is Malia.
ʻO wau ʻo Kalani.I am Kalani.
ʻO Noelani koʻu inoa.My name is Noelani.

After ʻo, “I” is wau. In a naming sentence the two parts can come in either order, as in ʻO Malia ʻo ia and ʻO ia ʻo Malia (the order Wikipedia shows).

Examples (5)

  1. ʻO Malia kēia.

    This is Malia.

    ʻO comes before the name.

  2. ʻO Keoni kēlā.

    That is Keoni.

    Kēlā means the person is far from both of you.

  3. ʻO wau ʻo Kalani.

    I am Kalani.

    After ʻo, the word for “I” is wau.

  4. ʻO Noelani koʻu inoa.

    My name is Noelani.

    A name can be the first part of the sentence.

  5. ʻO Leilani ʻo ia.

    She is Leilani.

    ʻO also goes before ia.

Common Mistakes

  • Leaving out ʻo before a name.

    Malia kēia.
    ʻO Malia kēia.

    A name that is the subject of a naming sentence takes ʻo.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

Naming Who Someone IsLevel 1

Learn This First

A naming sentence follows the he pattern but uses a name, so learners start with he sentences.

Learn Next

Patterns that build on this one.

Words in This Pattern

ʻo