VOA慢速英语2019--美国企业寻求保护夏威夷语

US Business Seeks to Protect Use of Hawaiian Word ‘Aloha’

Is it possible for a business to legally own a word from a native culture and prevent its use by members of the native community?

This question is being considered in the American state of Hawaii. Some Hawaiians were surprised to learn that an American company had trademarked a business name that includes “aloha” -- one of the most common native Hawaiian words.

The Chicago-based eatery’s full name is “Aloha Poke².”

Aloha is a native Hawaiian word commonly used as a friendly greeting. It can also mean love or kindness and is used by Native Hawaiians and others to describe the way of life in Hawaii.

The word “poke” is a traditional Hawaiian salad usually made from pieces of fish, rice and vegetables. American restaurants offering poke meals have increased in popularity in recent years.

Aloha Poke Company operates restaurants in several American cities. The company has sent letters to some other businesses that it discovered were using poke and aloha in their names. The letters stated that Aloha Poke was a trademarked name. It demanded that other businesses stop using the words or face legal action.

One of the targeted businesses was Aloha Poke Shop in Honolulu, Hawaii’s capital. Business co-owner Jeff Sampson told Hawaii’s News Now that at first, he thought the letter must be a joke. “Because I didn't think you could trademark¹ 'aloha' or 'poke' or them together in any shape or form."

Sampson said he ended up ignoring the letter after contacting lawyers and deciding that making a name change or launching a legal effort would be too costly³ for his business.

Sampson told the Associated Press he also explained to Aloha Poke Company that his Hawaii-based restaurant should not be considered a threat because it was too far away from the U.S. mainland.

Jarrett Keohokalole is a Native Hawaiian state senator. He said he was shocked “at the audacity⁴ of people from outside of our community” who seemed to be trying to prevent the use of “symbols and words that are important to our culture.”

Aloha Poke Company issued a statement to Hawaii’s News Now explaining its position. In the statement, business chief Chris Birkinshaw denied that his company had attempted to “own” the words aloha or poke.

However, he said the company does hold two federal trademarks⁵ for its company design logo and the words "Aloha Poke" for use with its restaurant business. The statement added that this gives the company the "exclusive right to use those words together in connection with restaurant services within the U.S."

The legal fight over Aloha Poke has increased publicity⁶ about a plan by some lawmakers in Hawaii to seek new legal measures that would protect Native Hawaiian cultural intellectual property.

A legislative⁷ proposal calls on Hawaiian state agencies and Native Hawaiian organizations to form a group to study legal ways to “recognize and protect” such property. If approved, the group would provide its legislative suggestions within three years.

I’m Bryan Lynn.

Words in This Story

trademark – v. secure an official registration⁸ for ownership of a product or idea

greeting – n. something friendly people say to each other when they meet

audacity – adj. showing too much confidence in one’s own behavior in a way that other people find shocking or rude

symbol – n. a sign or object used to represent something

logo – n. design or symbol used by a company to advertise its products

exclusive – adj. not shared with other people or organizations

intellectual property – n. something such as an idea, invention or process that comes from a person’s mind

1 trademark   

n.商标；特征；vt.注册的…商标

参考例句：

• The trademark is registered on the book of the Patent Office.该商标已在专利局登记注册。
• The trademark of the pen was changed.这钢笔的商标改了。

2 poke   

n.刺，戳，袋；vt.拨开，刺，戳；vi.戳，刺，捅，搜索，伸出，行动散慢

参考例句：

• We never thought she would poke her nose into this.想不到她会插上一手。
• Don't poke fun at me.别拿我凑趣儿。

3 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

4 audacity   

n.大胆，卤莽，无礼

参考例句：

• He had the audacity to ask for an increase in salary.他竟然厚着脸皮要求增加薪水。
• He had the audacity to pick pockets in broad daylight.他竟敢在光天化日之下掏包。

5 trademarks   

n.（注册）商标( trademark的名词复数 )；（人的行为或衣着的）特征，标记

参考例句：

• Motrin and Nuprin are trademarks of brands of ibuprofen tablets. Nuprin和Motrin均是布洛芬的商标。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Many goods in China have the trademarks of a panda. 中国的许多商品都带有熊猫的商标。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 publicity   

n.众所周知，闻名；宣传，广告

参考例句：

• The singer star's marriage got a lot of publicity.这位歌星的婚事引起了公众的关注。
• He dismissed the event as just a publicity gimmick.他不理会这件事，只当它是一种宣传手法。

7 legislative   

n.立法机构，立法权；adj.立法的，有立法权的

参考例句：

• Congress is the legislative branch of the U.S. government.国会是美国政府的立法部门。
• Today's hearing was just the first step in the legislative process.今天的听证会只是展开立法程序的第一步。

8 registration   

n.登记，注册，挂号

参考例句：

• Marriage without registration is not recognized by law.法律不承认未登记的婚姻。
• What's your registration number?你挂的是几号？