Informational article

Guide to Searching Honolulu Star-Advertiser Published Obituaries

The Honolulu Star-Advertiser, the primary daily newspaper serving Oahu and all Hawaiian Islands, publishes full obituaries, death notices, and memorial service details for residents across the state, making its archive a core resource for genealogy research, confirming passing details, and locating service information. You can search these published obituaries directly through the paper’s official digital archive, or via trusted third-party obituary aggregation platforms, with clear filtering options to narrow results by name, date, and location. ## Searching the Official Honolulu Star-Advertiser Obituary Archive Navigate to the Star-Advertiser’s official website and locate the dedicated Obituaries section, typically found in the top site navigation or under the "Sections" dropdown menu. The built-in search tool allows you to filter results by full name, date range, city or island location, and keyword (such as maiden name, place of worship, or military affiliation) to narrow results. Most obituaries published within the last 30 days are available to view for free, while full access to older archived entries requires a paid digital subscription; basic notice details including name, date of death, and service time are often available for free even for archived listings. If you prefer not to use the digital archive, free on-site access to physical and microfilm copies of the Star-Advertiser (and its predecessor publications, the Honolulu Star-Bulletin and Honolulu Advertiser, which merged in 2010) is available at public libraries across Hawaii, including the Hawaii State Library in Honolulu and branch locations on all major inhabited islands. ## Using Third-Party Obituary Search Platforms These platforms aggregate Star-Advertiser obituaries alongside listings from other local Hawaiian publications, simplifying cross-source searches. The most reliable options include Legacy.com, which hosts the Star-Advertiser’s official synced obituary feed, so all entries match the paper’s published records exactly; ObituaryArchive.com, which hosts digitized Hawaiian newspaper obituary records dating back to the 1800s; and HawaiiObituaries.com, a local platform that pulls directly from Star-Advertiser listings alongside notices from smaller island community papers. To use these tools, enter the full name of the deceased, approximate date of death, and any known location or affiliation details, and use platform filters to limit results to only Star-Advertiser publications if available. Most platforms offer free access to basic obituary text and service details, with optional paid upgrades for full guest book access, printed copies, or extended archive access. These tools are particularly useful for searches where the deceased may have had a notice published in multiple local papers, or for users who do not want to navigate the Star-Advertiser’s subscription requirements. ### Tips for More Accurate Searches Test alternate name spellings, including traditional Hawaiian name variations, anglicized versions, and maiden names for married individuals, as listings may use any of these formats. Narrow your date range to a 7-14 day window around the known or approximate date of death, as obituaries are almost always published within 1-3 days of a passing. Add unique keywords such as a known employer, community organization, or military service branch to filter out results for unrelated people with the same name. For searches of obituaries published before the 2010 merger of the Honolulu Star-Bulletin and Honolulu Advertiser, confirm you are checking entries tagged for both predecessor publications, as the Star-Advertiser’s digital archive includes full records from both papers post-merger.