Aloha

In the fourth grade, my social studies teacher, Mrs. Lee, asked us what the word aloha meant.  Somebody said "hello," then someone else said "goodbye."  Mrs. Lee held out for a while to make us think about it.  I don't know how many minutes went by before she told us that, in essence, it means love.  Years later, I learned how to say "I love you" in Hawaiian:  "Aloha au iā ʻoe"; in olden days, they might've said "Aloha wau iā 'oe," pronouncing the w in wau like a v.  (I should add that I don't speak even conversational Hawaiian, although I spent a bit of time studying some of the basics.  But some of my friends do speak the language, so I ask them questions from time to time).

Of course, the word is also used for hello and goodbye; it's also in the phrases for good morning, good afternoon, and evening.  Many if not most of us learn these in elementary school, in a song ("Aloha Kakahiaka").  I think it's nice that love is, was, deliberately included into all of these phrases, these sentiments. 

And then, still years later, someone taught me that alo means alo means "the bosom, or center, of the universe, and ha is "the breath of God."  I've seen it in books, too.  But the Wikipedia article makes a good point, that the hā used  for "breath" has a kahakō, i.e. is an elongated vowel, while the ha in aloha does not.  The Hawaiian Dictionary (by Mary Kawena Pukui and Samuel H. Elbert) agrees that it is hā and not ha, as would Hā: Breath of Life, the long-running show at the Polynesian Cultural Center (see http://habreathoflife.com).  So anyway. . .It's become one of those things that I'd like to resolve but am not sure how to do it.

Other usages

In 1959, Hawai'i's legislature designated it the Aloha state.  There are bumper stickers that say Live Aloha.  Local people usually say Aloha shirt, rather than Hawaiian shirt.  Sometimes when people use this as a greeting for a large crowd, they'll say "Aloooo-Ha!", the intention being for the crowd to respond in kind.  I myself kind of cringe when I see this, but I don't mean to be judgmental.  It is, after all, the most known Hawaiian word in the world, alongside our name. . .It's older than tourism, older than TV, and its essence can't be changed.