A type of volcanic rock or mineral from Hawaii, specifically a form of basaltic lava with particular mineral composition.
Named after Hawaii, the place of origin, with the '-ite' suffix commonly used in mineralogy and geology to name minerals and rocks—similar to 'granite,' 'magnetite,' and 'hematite.'
The '-ite' suffix in geology is borrowed from Greek and Latin, and it's become so productive that geologists can name thousands of minerals just by knowing what elements or places they come from—'hawaiite' tells you it's a Hawaiian mineral without needing a definition.
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