Ben · English boy’s name

Ben in Hawaiian is Peni

The form Hawaiian speakers have written since the 1800s, when B became P, and a vowel was added at the end.

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Say it

PEH·nee

The gold syllable takes the stress.

What is Ben in Hawaiian?

Ben is Peni in Hawaiian, said PEH-nee.

How Ben became Peni

Hawaiian is written with thirteen letters, so in Ben B became P, and a vowel was added at the end. A Hawaiian word cannot finish on a consonant, which is where the last vowel comes from.

Peni has a page of its own as a Hawaiian given name, with its popularity and the names it is usually paired with.

How to say Peni

Say it PEH-nee, leaning on PEH, sounding every vowel: e as in “bet”, i as “ee”. The pronunciation guide covers the whole system.

Sources the Pukui and Elbert Hawaiian Dictionary, Place Names of Hawaii, Nānā i ke Kumu, wehewehe.org, Wiktionary's Hawaiian given names and U.S. Social Security baby-name records. How this site is compiled · Send a correction

Questions people ask

What is Ben in Hawaiian?

Ben is Peni in Hawaiian, pronounced PEH-nee. It is the form used in Hawaiian-language records since the 1800s.

How do you pronounce Peni?

PEH-nee, with the stress on PEH.

Why does Peni look so different from Ben?

Each sound Hawaiian lacks was swapped for the nearest one it has. In Ben, B became P, and a vowel was added at the end.

Is Peni a real Hawaiian name?

Yes, as a borrowed name. Hawaiian families have used Peni since the 1800s, but it is Ben respelled, not a name built from Hawaiian words.

All 164 English names in Hawaiian · Hawaiian boy's names