Meanings
- Hawaiian mythologyAny of the twelve sisters of the volcano goddess Pele, especially the youngest, whom Pele was given to raise.
When Hi‘iaka, Lohi‘au, and her companion began their return trip, the forty days allowed by Pele had passed. Most of Hi‘iaka’s chants during the homeward journey have a recurrent refrain of sorrow, for by now she had a vision of Pele’s treachery.
1989, Rita Knipe, The Water of Life: A Jungian Journey through Hawaiian Myth, University of Hawaii Press, page 1462 more examples
1989, Hi‘iaka, entry in Robert D. Craig, Dictionary of Polynesian Mythology, Bloomsbury Publishing, page 60, Once there, Hi‘iaka learned that Lohi‘au had died out of grief for the woman (Pele) who had danced before him. Hi‘iaka was able to restore his spirit and life. Now they had [to] face the return voyage, and already the forty days had passed.
2015 [2008 M. E. Sharpe], Josepha Sherman, Storytelling: An Encyclopedia of Mythology and Folklore, Taylor & Francis (Routledge), unnumbered page, Hi‘iaka and Pele had several sisters, all of whom shared the name Hi‘iaka followed by a different description. The other sisters always used their full names unless grouped together, as in "the Hi‘iaka sisters." Only Hi‘iaka-i-kapoli-’o-Pele individually shortened her name to Hi‘iaka.
- astronomyThe larger, outer moon of the dwarf planet Haumea.
- A female given name from Hawaiian.
- A male given name from Hawaiian.
- A unisex given name from Hawaiian.
Origin
- Proto-Oceanic*sigi
- Proto-Polynesian*siki
- Hawaiianhiʻi
- Proto-Polynesian*qata
- Hawaiianaka
- HawaiianHiʻiaka
- EnglishHiʻiaka
Borrowed from Hawaiian Hiʻiaka.
More words from Hawaiian
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
Hiʻiaka. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Hi%CA%BBiaka
“Hiʻiaka.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Hi%CA%BBiaka. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Hiʻiaka,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Hi%CA%BBiaka.
Source: Hiʻiaka on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.