Oahu
Oahu (/oʊˈɑːhuː/ oh-AH-hoo) (Hawaiian: Oʻahu (pronounced [oˈʔɐhu])) is the most populated and third-largest of the Hawaiian Islands.[1] The island of Oahu and the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands constitute the City and County of Honolulu. The state capital, Honolulu, is on Oahu's southeast coast. In 2021 Oahu had a population of 995,638,[2] up from 953,207 in 2010 (approximately 70% of the total 1,455,271 population of the U.S. state of Hawaii,[3] with approximately 81% of those living in or near the Honolulu urban area).
Nickname: Gathering Place
596.7 sq mi (1,545 km2)
3rd largest Hawaiian Island
4,025 ft (1226.8 m)
1,016,508 (2020)
1,704/sq mi (657.9/km2)
Name[edit]
The Island of Oahu in Hawaii is often nicknamed, (or translated as) "The Gathering Place". The translation of "gathering place" was suggested as recently as 1922 by Hawaiian Almanac author Thomas Thrum. Thrum possibly ignored or misplaced the ʻokina because the Hawaiian phrase "ʻo ahu" could be translated as "gathering of objects" (ʻo is a subject marker and ahu means "to gather"). The term Oʻahu has no other confirmed meaning in Hawaiian.[4][5]
Geography[edit]
Oahu is 44 miles (71 km) long and 30 miles (48 km) across. Its shoreline is 227 miles (365 km) long. Including small associated islands such as Ford Island plus those in Kāneʻohe Bay and off the eastern (windward) coast, its area is 596.7 square miles (1,545.4 km2), making it the 20th-largest island in the United States.[11]
The city of Honolulu—the state's capital and largest city is located on the island. As a jurisdictional unit, all of Oahu is in Honolulu County, although Honolulu occupies only part of its southeastern end.
Well-known features of Oahu include Waikiki, Pearl Harbor, Diamond Head, Hanauma, Kāneʻohe Bay, Kailua Bay, North Shore, and the resort destination Ko Olina.
The island is composed of two separate shield volcanoes: the Waiʻanae and Koʻolau Ranges, with a broad valley or saddle (the central Oahu Plain) between them. The highest point is Kaʻala in the Waiʻanae Range, rising to 4,003 feet (1,220 m) above sea level.[12]
