View source for ʻOkina

{{short description|Letter of the Latin alphabet}}{{About|the Polynesian letter|the Unicode character {{char|ʻ}}|Modifier letter turned comma}}
{{Not to be confused with|Apostrophe|Quotation mark|Modifier letter apostrophe}}
{{Contains special characters}}

The '''{{okina}}okina''' ({{IPA|haw|ʔoˈkinɐ}}) is the letter that transcribes the [[glottal stop]] consonant in [[Hawaiian language|Hawaiian]]. It does [[Unicase|not have distinct uppercase and lowercase forms]], and is represented electronically by the [[modifier letter turned comma]]: '''{{serif|{{char|ʻ}}}}'''.

A [[phonemic]] glottal stop exists [[#Names|in many other Polynesian languages]] as well; these are usually written by a similar apostrophe-like letter.

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==Names==
Following are the names of the glottal stop consonant in various Polynesian languages, and notes on how they are represented in text.

{|class="wikitable"
|-
! width=120pt|Language
! width=150pt|Vernacular name
! Literal meaning
! Notes
|-
| [[Hawaiian language|Hawaiian]]
| {{wikt-lang|haw|ʻokina}}
| Separator; cutting; breaking
| The ''{{okina}}okina'' is often replaced in computer publications by the grave accent ('''{{char|`}}'''), the left single quotation mark ('''{{char|‘}}'''), or the apostrophe ('''{{char|'}}'''), especially when the correct typographical mark ('''{{char|ʻ}}''') is not available.
|-
| [[Samoan language|Samoan]]
| {{lang|sm|koma liliu}}
| "Inverted comma"—inverted ({{lang|sm|liliu}}) comma ({{lang|sm|koma}})
| Often replaced by an [[apostrophe]] in modern publications, recognized by Samoan scholars and the wider community.<ref name=hunkin>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mnIg9rH97_UC&pg=PA122 |title=Gagana Samoa: A Samoan Language Coursebook|first=Galumalemana Afeleti|last=Hunkin|publisher=University of Hawaii Press|year=2009|page=xiii |isbn=978-0-8248-3131-8|accessdate=17 July 2010}}</ref> Use of the apostrophe and [[macron (diacritic)|macron]] diacritics in Samoan words was readopted by the Ministry of Education in 2012 after having been abandoned in the 1960s.<ref name="samoa-news">{{cite web |title= Samoa to restore use of apostrophes and macrons |publisher=SamoaNews.com |date=25 November 2012 |url=http://www.samoanews.com/?q=node/68999 }}</ref>
|-
| [[Tahitian language|Tahitian]]
| {{lang|ty|ʻeta}}
| {{lang|ty|{{okina}}eta{{okina}}eta}} = to harden
|
|-
|[[Tongan language|Tongan]]
| {{lang|to|fakauʻa}} (honorific for {{lang|to|fakamonga}})
| Throat maker
| Typeset by the same character ('''{{char|ʻ}}''') as the ''{{okina}}okina'', according to the Unicode standard.<ref name=U5/>
|-
|[[Rapa Nui language|Rapa Nui]]
| {{lang|rap|ꞌeꞌe}}<ref>{{cite web |title=Learn Rapa Nui language |url=https://www.easterisland.travel/easter-island-facts-and-info/rapa-nui-language/learn/ |website=Easter Island Travel |access-date=10 September 2024}}</ref>
| 
| In electronic texts tends to be written with a (always lower-case) [[Saltillo (linguistics)#The_saltillo_letter|saltillo]] {{angbr|{{saltillo}}}}.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Kieviet|first=Paulus|url=https://langsci-press.org/catalog/book/124|title=A Grammar of Rapa Nui|date=2016-12-12|publisher=Language Science Press|series=Studies in Diversity Linguistics|location=Berlin|pages=19|isbn=9783946234753 }} (41st page of the downloadable PDF file)</ref>
|-
|  [[Cook Islands Māori]]
| {{lang|rar|ʻamata}} or {{lang|rar|{{okina}}akairo {{okina}}amata}}
| "[[hamza]]" or "hamza mark"
| Not commonly  used in daily writing. The 2014 Revised New Testament Bible  models the use of the Saltillo character  to mark the glottal stop. The ''{{okina}}okina'' is also used in some contemporary writing. 
|-
| [[Wallisian language|Wallisian]]
| {{lang|wls|fakamoga}}
| By throat
| Not used in daily writing. Various graphic forms are used.
|}

== Appearance ==
[[File:ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi in quotes.svg|upright=1.5|thumb| The phrase {{lang|haw|ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi}}, meaning "Hawaiian language", set in Gentium Book typeface. In the second line, the character-variant option for large apostrophe-like letters is set.]]

In many typefaces, the symbol for the ʻokina looks identical to the symbol for the [[left single quotation mark|curved single opening quotation mark]]. In others (like [[Linux Libertine]]) it is a slightly different size, either larger or smaller, as seen in the adjacent image.

The phrase illustrated is surrounded by single opening and closing [[quotation mark]]s. There is one ʻokina before the ''Ō'' and another one before the last ''i''. These are slightly smaller than the quotation marks in the first line and slightly larger in the second.

== Case ==
The {{okina}}okina is treated as a separate letter in the [[Hawaiian alphabet]]. It is used only before vowels: {{okina}}a, {{okina}}e, {{okina}}i, {{okina}}o, {{okina}}u. It is [[Unicase|unicameral]]—that is, it does not have separate [[uppercase]] (capital or majuscule) and [[lowercase]] (small or minuscule) forms—unlike the other letters, all of which are [[ISO basic Latin alphabet|basic Latin]] letters. For words that begin with an {{okina}}okina, [[capitalization]] rules affect the vowel: for instance, at the beginning of a sentence, the name of the letter is written "{{okina}}Okina", with a capital [[O]].

== Geographic names in the United States ==
The [[United States Board on Geographic Names]] lists relevant place names both with and without the {{okina}}okina and [[Macron (diacritic)|kahakō (macron)]] in the [[Geographic Names Information System]]. Colloquially and formally, the forms have long been used interchangeably.<ref>[http://unstats.un.org/unsd/geoinfo/ungegn/docs/23-gegn/wp/gegn23wp82.pdf U.S. Board on Geographic Names: Collection and Dissemination of Indigenous Names] (United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names, Twenty-third Session Vienna, 28 March – 4 April 2006, Working Paper No. 82), S. 3: "An example of this has been the addition of the glottal stop (okina) and macron (kahako) to placenames of Hawaiian origin, which prior to 1995 had always been omitted. The BGN staff, under the direction and guidance of the Hawaii State Geographic Names Authority, has been restoring systemically these marks to each Hawaiian name listed in GNIS."</ref>

== Computer encoding ==
{{Main|Modifier letter turned comma}}

=== Apostrophes and quotation marks ===

In the (limited) [[ASCII]] character set, the {{okina}}okina was typically represented by the [[apostrophe (mark)|apostrophe]] character ({{char|'}}), conventionally a straight [[typewriter apostrophe]], thus lacking the curve of the {{okina}}okina proper. In some [[computer font]]s, the ASCII apostrophe is rendered as a right single [[quotation mark]], which is an even less satisfactory glyph for the {{okina}}okina—essentially a 180° rotation of the correct shape.

Many subsequent "[[extended ASCII]]" character sets expanded on the overloaded ASCII apostrophe, providing distinct characters for the left and right single quotation marks. The left single quotation mark has been used as an acceptable approximation to the {{okina}}okina, though it still has problems: the {{okina}}okina is a letter, not a [[punctuation mark]], which may cause incorrect behaviour in automated text processing. Additionally, the left single quotation mark is represented in some typefaces by a glyph shaped like a mirrored miniature {{char|9}} (rather than like a {{char|6}}), and thus unsuitable for the {{okina}}okina.

=== Unicode ===

In the [[Unicode]] standard, the {{okina}}okina is encoded as [[Modifier letter turned comma|{{unichar|2BB|Modifier letter turned comma}}]] ({{char|ʻ}}). It can be rendered in [[HTML]] by the entity <code>&amp;#699;</code> (or in hexadecimal form <code>&amp;#x02BB;</code>).<ref name=U5>[http://unicode.org/Public/UNIDATA/NamesList.txt Unicode Standard 5.1] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131217221630/http://unicode.org/Public/UNIDATA/NamesList.txt |date=December 17, 2013 }}</ref>

Although this letter was introduced in Unicode 1.1 (1993), lack of technical support for this character prevented its easy and universal use for many years. Since about 2008, [[OS X]], [[Microsoft Windows]] and [[Linux]]-based computers and all new major smartphones have had no problem with correctly rendering the glyph. Consequently, U+02BB should be the value used in encoding new data when the expected use of the data permits.

== See also ==
* [[Ayin]], pronounced as a glottal stop in some languages
* {{anli| Glottal stop (letter)}}
* {{anli| Hamza}}
* {{anli| Modifier letter apostrophe}}
* {{anli|Modifier letter turned comma}}
* {{anli |Saltillo (linguistics)}}
* {{anli|Two dots (diacritic)}}, which has a Unicode codepoint {{unichar|0308|Combining diaeresis|cwith=◌|nlink=combining character}} that is also used for the [[umlaut (diacritic)]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
* Apple compatibility with Hawaiian added in OS 10.2
** "[http://www.olelo.hawaii.edu/text/resources/apple08242002.html Apple Computer Includes Hawaiian Language Support With Latest Operating System]". ({{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060911164056/http://www.olelo.hawaii.edu/text/resources/apple08242002.html |date=2006-09-11 }})
** [http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2002/Sep/02/ln/ln03a.html ''Honolulu Advertiser'' (September 2, 2002): "I mua! Macintosh 'speaks' Hawaiian"]
** [http://starbulletin.com/2002/09/16/news/story4.html ''Starbulletin'' (September 16, 2002): "Macs upgrade to isle punctuation"] ({{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070520012303/http://starbulletin.com/2002/09/16/news/story4.html |date=May 20, 2007 }})
** [http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi%3Ff%3D/news/archive/2002/09/02/state2043EDT0123.DTL SFGate (September 9, 2002): "Hawaiian language advocates applaud new Mac operating system"].
* [http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2003/Jul/16/ln/ln06a.html ''Honolulu Advertiser'' (June 28, 2004): "Hawaiian spellings catch on, but slowly".] (On slow progress in using proper Hawaiian spellings instead of makeshift English spelling.)
* [http://ulukau.org/browsers.php Ulukau: The Hawaiian Electronic Library: Browser information for viewing Hawaiian characters] ({{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061205233736/http://ulukau.org/browsers.php |date=2006-12-05 }})
* [http://www.mairiefaaa.pf The Okina in French Polynesian] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110304020400/http://www.mairiefaaa.pf/ |date=2011-03-04 }}, a graphic example on the top of the page of the official website of the commune of [[Faʻaʻā]], capital of the [[French Polynesia]] (this explains why the [[INSEE]] still encodes it like the French apostrophe).
* [http://www.coconutinfo.com/fonts-keyboard-support-pc.html Polynesian Font hints and information on encoding] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140222171942/http://www.coconutinfo.com/fonts-keyboard-support-pc.html |date=2014-02-22 }}.

{{Latin script}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Okina}}
[[Category:Hawaiian English]]
[[Category:Hawaiian language]]
[[Category:Latin-script letters]]
[[Category:Polynesian languages]]
[[Category:Tongic languages]]