Could Hawaii’s Big Island get a new name?

Bryce Moore
·3 min read
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HONOLULU (KHON) — It appears Hawaii’s Big Island may be getting a new official name.

The State of Hawaii’s Board on Geographic Names listed on its agenda for Tuesday, April 2, that it will be “revisiting the name of the Island of Hawaii.”

The name of where they live is pretty self-evident to residents of the largest island in the Hawaiian archipelago.

“Big Island has been around for years, and that term is hard for people to sometimes get away from,” Discovery Harbor resident Christine Kaehuaea told Nexstar’s KHON.

There can be confusion when speaking to folks from the mainland, however.

“I was talking to somebody on the mainland, and I guess they didn’t look at a map because they literally asked me how long it would take me to drive to Waikiki,” she said. (If you’re not familiar with Hawaii, Waikiki is located south of Honolulu on Oʻahu, multiple islands from the mainland.)

It can even get tricky for state representatives.

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“For someone like me who was born and raised in Hilo (on the Big Island), it’s always going to be the Big Island. And I think I’m trying my best to kind of navigate that when I’m in an official capacity, because, depending on the event you’re attending, it might be the Big Island, it might be Island of Hawaiʻi, it might be Moku o Keawe,” said Rep. Chris Todd, who represents Keaukaha and central Puna.

The Hawaii Board on Geographic Names — which falls under the Office of Planning and Sustainable Development — will meet on Tuesday, April 2 at 2 p.m. HST to discuss. The agenda says it is possible a decision could be made that would change the current official name of “Island of Hawaiʻi.”

The Hawaiian Home Lands Department said the two options on the table are:

  • Hawaiʻi

  • Hawaiʻi Island

“So there may be an opportunity to kind of bring things in so that it’s a little bit more consistent without a significant name change,” Rep. Todd said.

“Hawaiʻi Island works because then you have Oahu and all the other islands,” Kaehuaea said. “I vote for Hawaiʻi Island.”

Hawaiʻi County Council vice chair said in a statement:

“I don’t believe a name change is something that should be taken up at this time. A change in the name of our island could have numerous unintended negative consequences. Per HRS 4E-3, (a), the responsibility of the board is to ‘designate the official names and spellings of geographic features in Hawaii and provide for circulation thereof to the appropriate state and other agencies.  In its deliberations, the board shall solicit and consider the advice and recommendations of the appropriate county government officials, and, should the board desire, other knowledgeable persons.’ The purpose of Act 50 (1974) was to establish the board ‘to assure uniformity in the use of geographic features within the State.’ Although the term ‘geographic feature’ is not defined within Act 50 (1974), I do not believe it meant an entire island. So I question whether the Hawaiʻi Board on Geographic Names has the authority to change the name at all.”

Dr. Holeka Inaba, Hawaii County Council vice chair

Click here to tune into the Hawaii Board on Geographic Names meeting on the topic.

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