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March 2, 2017

'Da Kine,' Hawaii's Fantastically Flexible All-Purpose Noun

aadakine.jpg

This isn’t to say that da kine is always negative, nor that, really, it has to have “da” in front of it.
You could describe someone as “a smart kine people,” or tell your kid to “make sure you da kine before we go” (referring to doing a chore), or explain where someone went by saying “he wen da kine dem” (referring to going with somebody’s family, or friends, or whatever makes the most sense in context). Sometimes you can get clues: the word “stay,” in Hawaiian Pidgin, indicates an ongoing action. If you say “I stay eat lunch,” that means, basically, “I am eating lunch,” with no need for the -ing ending that English uses. If you talk about a woman, and you say she’s “stay da kine,” that often means, says Sakoda, that the woman is pregnant. - -| Atlas Obscura

Posted by gerardvanderleun at March 2, 2017 10:09 AM. This is an entry on the sideblog of American Digest: Check it out.

Your Say

'da kine' usage seems quite close to 'you know what' used among those familiar with each other.


Posted by: Howard Nelson at March 2, 2017 10:50 AM

"Da kine" usage seems identical to the condescending usage of "ebonics" by white people in a desperate bid for hip.

Posted by: Rob De Witt at March 2, 2017 10:55 AM

I suppose it is a step above grunting.

Posted by: itor at March 6, 2017 7:59 PM

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