lanai

Because I host a podcast about LGBTQ episodes of old sitcoms, The Golden Girls is something I end up talking about not infrequently. As a result, I also end up using the word lanai. As an architectural term, lanai was popularized by the show, which is set in Miami. If you don’t live in a climate where you’d benefit from a roofed-over outdoor area, it’s just not a term you’d use.

So what is a lanai, exactly? Both Merriam-Webster and Dictionary.com define the word as a covered porch, more or less synonymous with veranda. And although the term seems to be Hawaaian, sometimes written as lānai, there doesn’t seem to be a clear etymology. A good guess, I suppose, would be the Hawaiian island Lanai — more properly written as Lana'i — but there’s not a clear reason I could find what the geographic name would have to do with this style of porch. According to Wiktionary, the geographic name comes from the Hawaiian lā (“day”) and naʻi (“conquest”), supposedly in reference to the Mauian prince Kauluāʻau, who “brought order to the island by expelling its ghosts and demons.” And while I suppose there could be a symbolic extension of this etymology that could explain the architectural feature — a covered porch is another way of conquering the light and heat of the day — I just did not see any proof. Besides, this Reddit thread discusses why they’re probably not related.

Now, precise definitions for what constitutes a veranda vary, but according to the stricter ones, what we see on The Golden Girls may not actually be a true lanai — and that is ironic, considering how many people know the term because of the show and specifically associate the term with the show. According to this site, “a lanai is a private space attached to an apartment, house, or hotel and typically features at least one wall open to the elements [and] can act as a second living room and is typically found in warmer climates.” The Wikipedia entry for lanai, for example, points out that the Golden Girls example may not actually be a lanai. Based on what we see on the show, it’s hard to see how far the roofline extends over the backyard area, but the same Wikipedia page also notes that in Hawaii, the term gets used colloquially to mean any sort of outdoor gathering area. 

This picture sure makes it look like Sophia and Dorothy are getting sun on their heads, but then again, the actresses aren’t really outside. This is just a set, after all.

So what is the difference, then, between a veranda and a lanai? I honestly couldn’t tell you, at least by using the broader interpretation for the latter term. Most examples of real-life lanais and verandas look almost indistinguishable, and the dictionaries aren’t much help. According to Merriam-Webster, a veranda is “a usually roofed open gallery or portico attached to the exterior of a building,” but the presence of that word usually in there makes me think this is also a term that gets used freely — colloquially, in the way lanai gets used. According to Etymonline, veranda most likely comes from a Portuguese term — varanda, “long balcony or terrace” — which in turn probably comes from the Spanish baranda, “railing,” which goes back to the Vulgar Latin barra, “barrier or bar.” Merriam-Webster’s etymology for veranda says that the Hindi and Urgo barandā, “roofed gallery,” may also be related.