Shaka sign

The shaka sign is a common greeting gesture. It is often associated with Hawai'i. It consists of extending the thumb and smallest finger while keeping the three middle fingers curled, and raising the hand as in salutation with the back of the hand facing the person that is being greeted; sometimes the hand is rotated back and forth to emphasize the sign.

Meaning and use

Hawaiian locals use the shaka to convey what locals in Hawai'i call the "Aloha Spirit," a gesture of friendship and understanding between the various ethnic cultures that reside within Hawai'i, and thus it does not have a direct semantic to literal translation. Depending on context it can also be used to communicate notions such as "all right," "cool," "smooth," and the like.

Residents of states other than Hawai'i who use the shaka may describe it as meaning "hang loose," and in Florida the symbol itself is more commonly called the "hang loose" sign rather than the shaka sign. It can also be used to signal "hello," "goodbye," " till next time," "take care," or "all right!" In sign language, the shaka is one of the two signs used to refer to surfing.

Holding the shaka sign with the pinkie finger at the mouth and the thumb at the ear conveys a hand representation of a telephone.

Holding the shaka sign with the thumb at the mouth and the pinkie towards the sky with the head tilted back refers to...
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