Definitions
Etymologies
- Borrowed from Hawaiian word kahuna ("a shaman or wizard"). (Wiktionary)
Examples
“Every sort of kahuna was at bottom and in some regard a priest, his special department being indicated by a qualifying word, as _kahuna anaana_, sorcerer, _kahuna kalai wa'a_, canoe-maker.”
“The Hawaiian word kahuna meaning "priest" sounds remarkably similar to the Hebrew word for priest, but unless you can devise a story about an ancient encounter between Semitic tribes and Polynesians, it is likely that the two languages just happened to hit upon the same combination of sound and meaning in this one instant.”
“Once that power base is recognized, the biggest "kahuna" of them all becomes visible.”
“Whether you are a Native American medicine person, a Hawaiian kahuna, or a Kalahari Bushman, a sacred song is the line that connects you to the divine and enables the medicine to come forth, whether by direct infusion or recommended prescription.”
“It was the first of an expected wave of technology IPOs including companies such as discount-deal website Groupon Inc., music site Pandora Media Inc., and online game developer Zynga Inc. The big kahuna of technology offerings, Facebook, is expected next year.”
The Wall Street Journal: Flood of Fees Flows Into Bank Coffers
“Zynga Inc., the San Francisco social-gaming company, has filed to go public, with the big kahuna—Facebook Inc.—expected to follow next year.”
The Wall Street Journal: Millionaire Watch: In Silicon Valley a Countdown Is Under Way
“My guess is that Florida is going to be the big kahuna," said Brad Coker, a Florida-based pollster for Mason-Dixon who conducts surveys nationwide.”
The Huffington Post: Elections 2012: Florida Set For Big Role In GOP Primary
“She could skin the ordinary kahuna lapaau (medicine man) when it came to praying to Lonopuha and Koleamoku; read dreams and visions and signs and omens and indigestions to beat the band; make the practitioners under the medicine god, Maiola, look like thirty cents; pull off a pule hoe incantation that would make them dizzy; and she claimed to a practice of kahuna hoenoho, which is modern spiritism, second to none.”
“I'm not talking about the Constitution of the State of Michigan; I'm talking about the big kahuna: The Constitution of the United States.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘kahuna’.
-
POL - people in power
daredevil, tzar, king, boss, master, commander, chief, kingpin, top banana, bigwig, big cheese, big wheel and 452 more...
-
Magic Users
Wonderworkers and spellcasters, names and types. Not including any of those -mancer words.
witch, wizard, kahuna, mirabilist, mentalist, magi, illusionist, medicine man, sorcerer, conjurer, diviner, mage and 26 more...
-
Take Me To Your Whosit
About leaders, particularly the authority-figure at the top of the tree.
leader, chief, boss, cap'n, executive, president, head, tsar, alpha male, alpha female, conductor, dean and 127 more...
-
Courtesy of Josefa
A selection of words appearing in Mrs Byrne's dictionary of unusual, obscure, and preposterous words (1994 edition).
trollylolly, pozzy-wallah, kittly-benders, jimberjaw, lollybanger, randle, aval, perjinkities, brontophobia, mumruffin, rotche, atmatertera and 29 more...
-
The Inside Jokes
I and a select group of friends find these funny. Quite often it is a different friend each time.
octogenarian, schools of thought, yurt, zmay, jumbuck, stout old ladies, domkop, axolotl, citoyen, pertain, startling, enthralling and 52 more...
-
Words Covered in Faery Dust (K)
words that evoke magic, mystery, mayhem, magnificence or anything else that glimmers in the grass
katydid, keen, kid gloves, killdeer, kiln, kilt, kindle, kingfisher, kirtle, kite, knight, knoll and 16 more...
-
perhapsolutely's Words
polyradiculoneuro..., abulia, abubble, abscission, abaft, zareba, abatis, abigail, abiogenesis, ablate, ablaut, abo and 1705 more...
-
YellowFellow's Words
kinesis, quagmire, pariah, kahuna, pidgin, antithesis, quixotic
Tweets
Looking for tweets for kahuna.
treeseed Kahuna is a Hawaiian word, defined in the Pukui & Elbert Dictionary as "Priest, sorcerer, magician, wizard, minister, expert in any profession."
Forty different types of kahuna are listed in the book, Tales from the Night Rainbow. Kamakau lists more than 20 in the healing professions alone, including for example Kahuna la'au lapa'au, an expert in herbal medicine and kahuna haha, an expert in diagnosing illnesses.
_Wikipedia Feb 19, 2008