Hawaii was a hierarchical society, and the name had to be suitable to one's social class and family gods.
The lowest social kauwā (slave) class were only allowed to take simple names from natural objects.
The parents might change the name into something repulsive, like Pupuka ("ugly") or Kūkae ("excrement") in order to protect the child.
An American writes in 1851: In nineteenth century marriage documents, we can find several Hawaiians named, for example, Kamaʻi ("the illness; the genitals"), Kaʻaihue ("the thief"), Kapela ("the filth") and Waiwaiʻole ("worthless").
The most common names, used by both genders, were Kalua ("the second child, companion"), Keawe ("the strand", symbolic of lineage), Kamaka ("the eye", symbolic of beloved one), Keaka ("the shadow, essence"), Kealoha ("the love"), ʻŌpūnui ("big belly", sign of high social class), and Māhoe ("twin").
Grandparents could give traditional names to the next two generations, but a baby born into a Hawaiian family in the 2000s might not have any native speaker relatives.
The film industry produces pseudo-Hawaiian names, from Aloma of the South Seas (1926) to Lilo & Stitch (2002).
A minority of parents have started giving nothing but Hawaiian names to their children.
In births registered on Oʻahu 2001–2002, about 25% of girls and 15% of boys received at least one Hawaiian name.
Names with negative meaning have disappeared in this sample, and the unisex quality is waning.
Many favorite names a hundred years ago, like Kealoha, Kalei, Leialoha, and Keonaona, were popular with both sexes.
Other popular names for men included: The Social Security Administration gives out annual lists of the top hundred names for boys and girls in the State of Hawaii, starting from the year 1960.
In 2008, they were Kaila ("style/the birthmark", although this is also an English variant of Kayla), Maile, Malia, Kalena ("the yellow"), Kiana (Diana), Alana and Kamalei ("lei child") for girls, and Kai, Kainoa, Keanu ("the coolness"), Kainalu ("billowy sea"), Nāinoa, Kaimana and Kanoa ("the commoner, free man") for boys.