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Hawaiian Girl Names That Mean Light

If you want Hawaiian girl names that mean light, this list gathers the sun-drenched, bright-joy names Hawaiian naming traditions keep circling back to.

Names20
OriginHawaiian
MeaningLight
GenderGirl

Hawaiian names lean heavily on compact root words that get recombined again and again, which is why so many names on this page echo each other. Kalea — ka (the) plus lea (happiness) — is the clearest example, and its shape shows up reworked in Kaleah, Kaleigha, and Kaleiah.

Other names build outward from lana itself, a root tied to floating light and calm, giving us Lana, Lanna, Lahna, Malana, and the compound Kailana, which adds kai for sea.

Hawaiian girl names that mean light, and how they differ

Not every name here means light the same way. Kalea and its siblings point to bright joy, a happiness that shows on the outside, while Lana and Lahna carry a calmer, sun-on-water kind of light. Malana shifts the idea again, toward buoyancy — something light rather than something lit. Elani reaches further, toward brightness and heaven, since it draws on Hebrew and Greek roots alongside its Hawaiian use.

Familiar names versus newer coinages

Lana is the name here parents already know, helped along by Lana Turner and a long run of use outside Hawaii. Newer combinations like Nialani, Kaliana, and Kailana are modern blends built from recognizable Hawaiian pieces — lani, ana, kai — rather than names with old, fixed histories, which is worth knowing if you want something more established.

Names List

Lana#406 in the U.S.Multiple independent origins: in Hawaiian it means floating or light; in Slavic languages it is a short fPronounced LAH-nah▶Elani#844 in the U.S.A modern name drawing on multiple roots: the Hebrew el (God) combined with a nature suffix; the Greek ElePronounced eh-LAH-nee▶Kalea#1364 in the U.S.Bright joy, full of happinessPronounced kah-LAY-ah▶Kaleah#1428 in the U.S.Bright joy, full of happinessPronounced kah-LEE-ah▶Kaliana#3130 in the U.S.Likely a creative elaboration of Hawaiian Kalani ('the heavens, royalty') with the suffix -ana, or a blenPronounced kah-lee-AH-nah▶Mahina#3672 in the U.S.Moon, moonlight; from Hawaiian mahina, also the name of the moon goddessPronounced mah-HEE-nah▶Aylanni#4288 in the U.S.Modern coinage echoing Ayla ('moonlight') and the -lani ending ('heaven'); double-n styling; no single fiPronounced ay-LAH-nee▶Aolani#4658 in the U.S.From Hawaiian ao, 'cloud, daylight, world', plus lani, 'heaven, royal' — 'heavenly cloud; royal one from Pronounced ow-LAH-nee▶Kaleigha#4698 in the U.S.Modern coinage echoing Kalea/Kaleah ('bright, beautiful', Hawaiian) and Kaylee; no single fixed rootPronounced kə-LEE-ah▶Lanna#6268 in the U.S.A pet form of Alana/Lana — variously 'a rock' and 'harmony, beauty' (the feminine of Alan), 'bright' (RusPronounced LAN-ah▶Kaleiah#6487 in the U.S.A spelling echoing Kalea/Kaleah — from Hawaiian, 'bright; joy, happiness'; also brushing the -leiah/-leahPronounced kə-LAY-ah▶Malana#6808 in the U.S.Variously the Hawaiian malana, 'buoyant; light; floating', and a modern Mala- + -ana blend; routes layerePronounced mah-LAH-nah▶Nialani#6828 in the U.S.A modern coined name, joining Nia (variously 'purpose'; 'bright') with the -lani ending (Hawaiian, 'heavePronounced nee-ah-LAH-nee▶Kailana#7383 in the U.S.A modern name, joining Kai (Hawaiian 'the sea') with Lana ('calm; afloat; light'); routes uncertainPronounced ky-LAH-nah▶Lahna#7769 in the U.S.A spelling of Lana — variously Hawaiian, 'calm/still water; a float; a harbor', and a Slavic short form oPronounced LAH-nah▶Healani#8612 in the U.S.From the Hawaiian hea, 'a haze; a mist; a glow', + lani, 'heaven; sky', hence 'the haze/glow of heaven; hPronounced heh-ah-LAH-nee▶Alaula#11108 in the U.S.From the Hawaiian alaula, 'light of early dawn; the glow of sunrise or sunset' — a poetic word for the skPronounced ah-lah-OO-lah▶Alohi#15364 in the U.S.Hawaiian alohi, 'to shine, brilliant, radiant'. A genuine Hawaiian word used as a given name, and treatedPronounced ah-LOH-hee▶Keli#16424 in the U.S.A spelling of Kelly, from the Irish O Ceallaigh, 'bright-headed' or 'warrior; strife'; separately a HawaiPronounced KEH-lee▶Lehua#16549 in the U.S.A Hawaiian name for the blossom of the ohia tree — a bright red flower that grows on new lava, and one ofPronounced leh-HOO-ah▶

More Hawaiian Meaning Guides

Girl Names That Mean GodGirl Names That Mean FlowerGirl Names That Mean BeautyBoy Names That Mean the SeaGirl Names That Mean PeaceGirl Names That Mean the SkyGirl Names That Mean RoyaltyGirl Names That Mean the SeaGirl Names That Mean Leader

Frequently Asked

What is the most traditional Hawaiian name for light on this list?

Kalea has the clearest, most direct Hawaiian etymology here, built from ka (the) and lea (happiness) to mean bright joy.

Are Kalea, Kaleah, and Kaleiah the same name?

They're variant spellings and offshoots of one root. Kalea is the original form; Kaleah and Kaleiah adjust the spelling but keep the bright-joy meaning.

Is Lana actually a Hawaiian name?

Lana carries meanings across Hawaiian, Slavic, and Irish traditions, so its light or rock associations depend partly on which root a family is drawing from.