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Hawaiian Name Finder

Benjamin · English boy’s name

Benjamin in Hawaiian is Peniamina

The form Hawaiian speakers have written since the 1800s, when B became P, J became I, a vowel was slipped between the consonants that ran together, and a vowel was added at the end.

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peh·nee·ah·MEE·nah

The gold syllable takes the stress.

What is Benjamin in Hawaiian?

Benjamin is Peniamina in Hawaiian, said peh-nee-ah-MEE-nah.

How Benjamin became Peniamina

Hawaiian is written with thirteen letters, so in Benjamin B became P, J became I, a vowel was slipped between the consonants that ran together, and a vowel was added at the end. Hawaiian does not run two consonants together, and every syllable ends on a vowel. A Hawaiian word cannot finish on a consonant, which is where the last vowel comes from.

Other recorded spellings of Benjamin

Hawaiian records do not settle on one spelling for every borrowed name. Alongside Peniamina, Benjamin was also written Peni. Each is a real Hawaiian writing of the name rather than a variant anyone invented; which one a family used came down to who was doing the writing, and when.

How to say Peniamina

Say it peh-nee-ah-MEE-nah, leaning on MEE, sounding every vowel: e as in “bet”, i as “ee”, a as in “father”. 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 Benjamin in Hawaiian?

Benjamin is Peniamina in Hawaiian, pronounced peh-nee-ah-MEE-nah. It is the form used in Hawaiian-language records since the 1800s.

How do you pronounce Peniamina?

peh-nee-ah-MEE-nah, with the stress on MEE.

Why does Peniamina look so different from Benjamin?

Each sound Hawaiian lacks was swapped for the nearest one it has. In Benjamin, B became P, J became I, a vowel was slipped between the consonants that ran together, and a vowel was added at the end.

Is Peniamina a real Hawaiian name?

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

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