Hawaiian Grammar - Syntax

Syntax

Hawaiian is a predominantly verb–subject–object language. One exception is if the sentence has a negative mood and the subject is a pronoun, in which case word order is subject–verb–object instead (e.g. ʻaʻole ʻoia e puka ana, "not he graduate ", "he won't graduate"). Another exception is that if there is an emphatic adverbial phrase at the start of the sentence, a pronoun subject precedes the verb. Word order is flexible, and the emphatic word can be placed first in the sentence. Hawaiian largely avoids subordinate clauses, and often uses a possessive construction instead.

Within the noun phrase, adjectives follow the noun (e.g. ka hale liʻiliʻi "the house small", "the small house"), while possessors precede it (e.g. kou hale "your house"). Numerals precede the noun in the absence of the definite article, but follow the noun if the noun is preceded by the definite article.

Hawaiian, like English, is a non-pro-drop language. Nonetheless, there is an exception with commands, where the use of subject pronouns is optional. In these cases, the subject pronoun is seldom used if the context deems it unnecessary, as in e hele i ke kula " go to the school", "go to school"; here, the subject "you" is understood, and can be omitted.

Yes-no questions can be unmarked and expressed by intonation, or they can be marked by placing anei after the leading word of the sentence. Examples of question-word questions are He aha kēia? "A what this?", "What is this?" and 'O wai kou inoa " who your name?", "What is your name?"

The typical detailed word order is given by the following, with most items optional:

(a) Tense/aspect signs: i, ua, e, etc.

(b) Verb

(c) Qualifying adverb: mau, wale, ole, pu, etc.

(d) Passive sign: 'ia

(e) Verbal directives: aku, mai, etc.

(f) Locatives nei or lā, or particles ana or ai

(g) Strengthening particle: no

(h) Subject

(i) Object or predicate noun

See also Hawaiian Language: Syntax and other resources.