What does Alapaʻi mean in Hawaiian?
Alapaʻi is a Hawaiian boy name that means a chiefly name. The name comes from chiefly name. It is pronounced ah-lah-PYE, with 3 syllables. The stressed syllable is written in capitals.
Name of an 18th century chief and chiefess.
Alapaʻi belongs with other Hawaiian names about royalty.
Alapaʻi of Hawaiʻi Island
Alapaʻinui was the ruling chief of Hawaiʻi Island in the first half of the 1700s. Kamehameha was born during his reign, and in the best-known account a prophecy that the child would overthrow chiefs led Alapaʻi to order him killed, and the infant was hidden and raised in secret.
Alapaʻi later brought the young Kamehameha into his court. The name belongs to that chief and to the story around Kamehameha's birth, and it is used for boys.
How to pronounce Alapaʻi
Say every vowel. The vowels in Alapaʻi are a as in “father”, i as “ee”. The ʻokina (ʻ) in Alapaʻi is a short pause, like the break in “uh-oh”. See the full Hawaiian pronunciation guide.
Is Alapaʻi a boy or girl name?
Alapaʻi is used mainly as a boy's name, though Hawaiian itself has no grammatical gender.
How often Alapaʻi is given in the U.S.
No year from 1880 to 2023 saw five or more U.S. babies named Alapaʻi, and it never reaches five in the Hawaiʻi records either, so it is rare as a first name.
How well recorded is Alapaʻi?
Alapaʻi has its own entry among Wiktionary’s documented Hawaiian given names.