Just like in many different cultures around the world, in Hiaki culture, it is expected of an individual to look presentable and be well dressed for more formal occasions. But, there is always at least one person who just never seems to dress formally enough for events that call for nicer attire. Here are some Hiaki phrases you can say to describe the way somebody like that might look or dress.
San cho’o kovak is a phrase you can use to describe somebody with unkempt hair.
Womti cho’o kovak is a similar phrase, but it means something like “frightened hair” and refers to somebody’s hair standing up more than it should.
To describe somebody who simply never dresses appropriately for special occasions, you can say
Aapo hiva hunuen au uhu’u, which means something like “this is how he/she carries him/herself”.
If you want to say something similar but want to make it specific about messy hair, you can say
Aapo hiva san ata kovaka na weye, which roughly means “he/she’s always going around with his/her hair like that”. In a conversation, somebody could reply
Kaa au chike, which means “he/she doesn’t comb him/herself”.
However, if you want to say something positive about somebody who always looks presentable and is always well-put-together, you can say Hunuu hamut hiva tu’ulisi au uhu’u, which means “that woman always carries/presents/takes care of herself well”, but only if you’re a woman yourself. If you are a man, you ought to say Hunuu maala hiva tu’ulisi au uhu’u. The difference here is that it’s okay for a woman to refer to another woman as using the word hamut, but men should use the word maala out of respect for the woman they’re speaking about.
