pahoehoe

[Hawaiian pāhoehoe : pā-, pref. + hoehoe, reduplication of hoe, to paddle (probably from the swirls on its surface).]

A type of lava flow which spreads in sheets, associated with highly fluid, basic lava, such as that ejected from Hawaiian volcanoes. The surface is a glassy layer which has been dragged into ropy folds by the movement of the hot lava below it.

Basaltic lava with a smooth, billowy, or ropy surface.