Taro & Ti Taro

ala Fragrance; usually refers to the pleasant aroma emitted by the cooked corms of certain varieties, notably varieties belonging to the Kai group.

apei Crinkled

apowale To seize

apu Refers primarily to the cup, fashioned from a well-ripened coconut shell cut longitudinally, used for drinking medicine and other unpleasant liquids but not employed for ordinary drinking water.

ekaeka Dirty reddish.

ele Shortened or condensed form of eleele.

eleele Dark-colored; black.

elepaio A bird; flycatcher.

ha Petiole.

hao Cooked soft.

hinu Smooth, glossy.

huli Planting material consisting of a large central bud cut from the apex of the corm, with about 1/8 to 1/4 inch of the corm attached to about 6 to 12 inches of the basal portion of the petiole.

ii Rot.

ili Outer surface.

kahuna A native priest, of whom there were several orders.

kai Salt water; also the name of a group of taro varieties, possibly so named because of tolerance to saline conditions.

kalalau Wanderer; name of a valley on Kauai.

kalo A general term used to designate the whole taro plant; specifically it refers to the parent corm. Kalo and taro are merely dialectic variations of the same word, the former being the original and authentic Hawaiian name.

kea Light-colored, not necessarily white.

keiki Synonymous with Oha.

keokeo White or whitish, very light-colored.

kukuluhema South point.

kulolo A Hawaiian pudding prepared principally from grated raw taro and coconut milk, steamed underground.

kumu A brilliantly red-colored fish.

lau Leaf, leaves.

lehua Red or reddish; refers to the reddish poi made from certain varieties of taro with lilac-purple corms; also the name of a group of taro varieties noted for the excellent quality of reddish poi.

leo Influence arising from station.

loa Long, tall.

luau Greens prepared from young, delicate inner leavs of the taro plant. Since luau was an essential part of every native feast, the term luau has come to be a designation for the feast itself.

maea Strong or bad smelling.

makoko A reddish fish.

makua Parent or older one; ie, kalo-makua or parent corm.

mana Branching; also the name of a group of taro varieties characterized by branching of the perant corm at the apex.

manini A striped fish living in the coral reefs.

maoli Native; genuine.

moana Broad.

moano A fish.

moi A fish.

nawao Wild taro; bad.

oha Primarily lateral cormlets or suckers produced from the parent corm.

ohe Hawaiian bamboo.

okoa Different; another.

omao Green.

oopukai A fish.

opelu A fish (mackerel).

owali Weak.

owene The first crop of taro.

paiai (Pai, a bundle, and ai, food.) A round bundle of pounded taro done up in ti leaves (Cordyline terminalis).

pake Chinese.

pala Soft; ripe, as fruit; mellow; cooked soft.

papa Old; ancient.

pele Goddess of the volcano.

piko Navel; the upper surface of a leaf blade at the point of junction with the petiole. Also the name of a group of tar varieties.

poi Pasty mass made by pounding or grinding cooked taro corms, with sufficient water added after thorough pounding to obtain the proper consistency, and allowed to ferment for a shorter or longer time before it is consumed.

pololu Spear; a valley on Hawaii.

poni Royal; purple.

puu Secondary comrlets, too small to cook and not yet producing leaves.

uaua Tough, elastic, viscid, glutinous, not easily separated.

uli Shortened or condensed form of uliuli.

uliuli A dark or dusky hue.

ula Breadfruit.

wai Water.

Adapted from “Taro Varieties in Hawaii” Bulletin 84 by CTAHR