The State of Hawaii (Hawaiian: Mokuina o Hawaii) became the 50th state of the United States of America on August 21, 1959. The archipelagic state is situated in the North Pacific Ocean, 2,300 miles (3,700 km) from the mainland, at 21°1841N, 157°4747W. In the 19th century, Hawai'i was also known as the Sandwich Islands.
In dialects of American English, "Hawai'i" is pronounced at least three different ways: (IPA pronunciation: [h.wa.ji], [h.wa.i], [h.wa.i]). In the Hawaiian language, there is also some variation possible, but the most general pronunciation is [h.vi.i] or [h.wi.i]. This last Hawaiian pronunciation is often used by native-English-speaking Hawai'i residents, as well.
