Hapa

Hapa is a term used to describe a person of mixed ethnic heritage. The term originates in Hawaii from the Hawaiian Pidgin word for "part" or "mixed". In Hawaii, the word refers to any person of mixed ethnic heritage, regardless of the specific mixture. In California, the term has recently been used for any person of part Asian or Pacific Islander descent. Therefore, there are two concurrent usages.

Etymology and usage

The term hapa comes from a Hawaiian Pidgin word that denotes a part or fragment of something, itself a loan from the English word half. When applied to people, this denotes that such people are of mixed descent.

Used without qualification, hapa is often taken to mean "part White" and is shorthand for hapa haole. The term can be used in conjunction with other Hawaiian racial and ethnic descriptors to specify a particular racial or ethnic mixture. Examples of this is hapa haole (part European/White).

Pukui states that the original meaning of the word haole was "foreigner". Therefore, all non-Hawaiians can be called haole. In practical terms, however, the term is used as a racial description for Caucasians (whites), with the specific exclusion of Portuguese. Portuguese were traditionally considered to be a separate race in Hawaii.