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August 3, 2025 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Explorers and Traders … the Pacific and Hawai‘i

The word ‘spice’ is derived from the Latin ‘species’, or ‘special wares’, and refers to an item of special value, as opposed to ordinary articles of trade.  Spices were highly valued because, as well as being used in cooking, many had ritual, religious or medical uses.

They were of high value because of their relative geographical scarcity. Spices could only be grown in the tropical East; South Asia served as a major source of spices – in the South of China, Indonesia, as well as in Southern India and Sri Lanka.

Among the most widespread were the spices cinnamon, pepper, clove, nutmeg, and mace. (Hancock)  Some spices, such as cloves and nutmeg, grew nowhere else in the world.

The spice trade was conducted mostly by camel caravans over land routes (known as the Silk Roads).  The Silk Roads were important routes connecting Asia with the Mediterranean world, including North Africa and Europe. (Deepanjana, UNESCO)

From as early as 2000 BC, spices, such as cinnamon from Sri Lanka and cassia from China, were exported along the Silk Road as far west as the Arabian Peninsula and the Iranian Plateau. Other goods were also exchanged/traded – cargoes from China included ivory, silk, porcelain, metals and gemstones.  (Deepanjana, UNESCO)

Later, Spice Routes were established; these were the name given to the network of sea routes that linked the East with the West.  The journey of the goods between all these links in the chain is called a trade route (the word ‘trade’ derives from a term meaning a track or course).

One of the major motivating factors in the European Age of Exploration was the search for direct access to the highly lucrative Eastern spice trade.

in 1513, a Spanish captain, Vasco Nuñez de Balboa, went into the interior of Darien (Panama). On September 24, 1513, Balboa sighted a new ocean. He called it the Mar del Sur, or ‘sea of the south’ (South Sea); later (1520), Ferdinand Magellan called it the Mare Pacificum, or Pacific Ocean.

The accounts of the first explorers revealed the potential for high-value commodity exchange, and voyages of exploration were soon followed by those of spice traders. (BOEM)

From 1500 AD onward, first Portugal, and then other European powers, attempted to control the spice trade, the ports which marketed spices, and eventually the territories which grew them. (Cartwright)

The Portuguese established trading posts in China at Macau in 1513, in Timor in 1515, and finally at Nagasaki, Japan in 1543. Within the next decades, Dutch competitors followed the Portuguese across the Indian Ocean and into Southeast Asia. (BOEM)

Then came the Spanish … on November 28 1520, Spaniard Fernao de Magalhais (Ferdinand Magellan) entered the eastern Pacific from the opposite direction, by way of the tip of South America, discovering the strait that now bears his name, and thereby opened up to Spain the possibility of an alternative route between Europe and the spices of the Orient.”  (Lloyd)

Magellan crossed the ocean to the Philippines, which he named Las Islas Filipinas in honor of the Spanish king, Felipe. (Spate) The Spanish ultimately prevailed against other European competition in terms of Pacific trade. They did this through the founding of their outpost at Manila (Philippines) in 1571 and the establishment of regular transpacific Manila Galleon voyages.

Once a year, gold and silver were transported west from Acapulco to Manila in exchange spices (pepper, clove and cinnamon), porcelain, ivory, lacquer and elaborate fabrics (silk, velvet, satin), collected from both the Spice Islands (Moluccas, Indonesia) and the Asian Pacific coast.

The Pacific fur trade was pioneered by the Russians, working east from Kamchatka along the Aleutian Islands to the southern coast of Alaska. (ESDAW)

Originally, Russia exported raw furs, consisting in most cases of the pelts of martens, beavers, wolves, foxes, squirrels, and hares. Between the 16th and 18th centuries, Russians began to settle in Siberia, a region rich in many mammal fur species, such as Arctic fox, lynx, sable, sea otter and stoat (ermine).

it was the French and  British who dominated Pacific exploration in the eighteenth century. Beginning in the mid-1700s, the rival nations began to send out scientific expeditions to explore and chart the islands of the Pacific.

British explorers included Samuel Wallis (1767–68) and Philip Carteret (1767–68). But by far the most wide-ranging and accomplished of the eighteenth-century explorers was the Englishman Captain James Cook, who made three separate voyages to the Pacific in 1768-71, 1772-75, and 1776-80. (Kjellgren, MetMuseum)

After Cook was killed in Hawai‘i, one of his officers – and later a Captain – George Vancouver continued to explore and chart the Northwest Coast.  Commercial traders soon followed, exchanging copper, weapons, liquor, and varied goods for sea otter pelts. (Barbour)

Following Cook’s ‘discovery’ of the opportunities in the fur trade, the North American maritime fur trade became the earliest global economic enterprise.  Cook’s ‘discovery’ resulted in the British and then the Americans participating in the trade.

Following the American Revolution, the new nation needed money and a vital surge in trade. In 1787, two ships (Columbia, captained by John Kendrick, and Lady Washington, captained by Robert Gray) left Boston on a mission around Cape Horn and into the Pacific Ocean. to establish new trade with China, settle an outpost on territory claimed by the Spanish, and find the legendary Northwest Passage.

Within ten years after Captain Cook’s 1778 contact with Hawai‘i, the islands became a favorite port of call in the trade with China.  The fur traders and merchant ships crossing the Pacific needed to replenish food supplies and water.

Needing supplies in their journey, the traders soon realized they could economically barter for provisions in Hawai‘i; for instance, any type of iron, a common nail, chisel or knife, could fetch far more fresh fruit, meat, and water than a large sum of money would in other ports.

A triangular trade network emerged linking the Pacific Northwest coast, China and the Hawaiian Islands to Britain and the United States (especially New England).  Practically every vessel that visited the North Pacific in the closing years of the 18th century stopped at Hawai‘i for refreshment and recreation.

As trade and commerce expanded across the Pacific, numerous countries were looking for faster passage and many looked to Nicaragua and Panama in Central America for possible dredging of a canal as a shorter, safer passage between the two Oceans.

Finally, in 1881, France started construction of a canal through the Panama isthmus.  By 1899, after thousands of deaths (primarily due to yellow fever) and millions of dollars, they abandoned the project and sold their interest to the United States.

After Panamanian independence from Columbia in 1903, the US restarted construction of the canal in 1905.  Finally, the first complete Panama Canal passage by a self-propelled, oceangoing vessel took place on January 7, 1914.

Later, when Navy Commander John Rodgers and his crew arrived in Hawaiʻi on September 10, 1925 on the first trans-Pacific air flight, they fueled the imaginations of Honolulu businessmen and government officials who dreamed of making Hawaiʻi the economic Crossroads of the Pacific, and saw commercial aviation as another road to that goal.

Two years later on March 21, 1927, Hawaii’s first airport was established in Honolulu and dedicated to Rodgers.  1959 brought two significant actions that shaped the present day make-up of Hawai‘i, (1) Statehood and (2) jet-liner service between the mainland US and Honolulu (Pan American Airways Boeing 707.)

Here is a link for more on Explorers and Traders: https://imagesofoldhawaii.com/wp-content/uploads/Explorers-and-Traders.pdf

© 2025 Ho‘okuleana LLC

Filed Under: Economy, General, Sailing, Shipping & Shipwrecks Tagged With: Pacific, Traders, Ecplorers, Silk Road, Spice Route, Hawaii

August 2, 2025 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Pipi Chute

In the middle 1800s, ranching became a significant economic engine in the Hawaiian Islands. On Lānai, Mānele Landing served as the port of call for ships picking up cattle, sheep and goats; and also in service of passengers and freight.

Ranching was the primary commercial enterprise on Lānai between 1860 to 1922. Initial activities focused on goats and sheep, but by the early 1900s cattle had become the primary stock.

To ship the cattle (in Hawaiian, pipi) to Honolulu, the animals were driven down to Mānele, held in pens, and then loaded on interisland steamers.

“They used to send cattle out, and then the Inter-island Steam [Navigation] Company’s boat, you know, freighters, used to come in, take those cattle to Honolulu, O’ahu, anyway.” (Fusako Nishimura Uchimura, UHM Oral History)

“In the early 1900s there were not as many wharves as there are today, and it was in few places that stock could be loaded onto the vessels through chutes as is more general now. The steamer would be anchored out from the shore and a heavy line run to some attachment on the land.”

“A boat was then tied to this shoreline and held in deep water. The cattle would be in a corral above high water or were driven out into the water and kept there by the surrounding cowboys.”

“On Lānai the corral was at Mānele at the top of a wide beach separating it from the sea. A lasso was thrown over the horns of one of the animals in the corral, the other end held by a man on horseback, and it was herded out and down the beach following the horse.”

“The animal’s efforts to escape brought it into the water as the horse headed for the boat. When within reach, just as the led animal lost its footing and the horse was reaching for the bottom with its hind feet the cowboy threw the rope to the men in the boat who would then throw another rope back to him.”

“The boat, with several beasts securely tied to the thwarts on each side, would be towed back to the steamer. Slings were adjusted to the animals and in turn they were hoisted to the deck and tied along the sides.”

“In fine weather this worked out well, but when rough it was risky, and sometimes cattle were injured or drowned. … so we devised a portable chute in sections, for bringing the stock to the water’s edge. The sections were drawn up when not in use. This was a great improvement, but we were not yet satisfied.”

“A corral was then built at the top of a low cliff overlooking a small tidal shelf with fairly deep water close to it. A chute was run out to above the edge of the tidal shelf close to deep water and supported there by posts.”

“Into this another chute was telescoped which, when run out over the water, reached to the deck of the steamer. By using a calf led down the chute, the large cattle were induced to follow, and the loading was done in a few minutes.”

“The calf was brought ashore ready for the next shipment. The steamer then pulled out, and the cattle were tied up as she proceeded on her way.”

“Even with this method, the work could still prove more or less harassing with changes of weather. After the Hawaiian Pineapple Company built the Kaumalapau Harbor and wharf, the cattle were shipped from the wharf through a chute. The pen and chutes were movable and, when not in use, kept out of the way of other work.” (Munro:105)

“I think more in the ‘20s, maybe, that’s when they built that chute. That thing was really something. You know they’d lead the calf down. The cows all follow the calf, they go right onto the ship.”

“But one time that thing broke, the cattle fell in the water. Some died; some, you see them swim. I didn’t know they could swim, they good swimmers. The cows, yeah.” (Violet Keahikoe Gay, UHM Oral History)

“They put the chute down onto the deck of the ship, and the ship would be going [i.e., bobbing] up and down, and the cattle would be bawling their heads off, and they’d have to be prodded to go down this chute to get onto the deck of the ship.” (Jean Forbes Adams, UHM Oral History)

“When I came over here, they had the chute and they had down. When too rough, the boat no can go by the side [of the chute], so they go by the sand side, everybody go swim. Over there, they rope ‘em and drag ‘em inside the water.” (Ernest S. Richardson, UHM Oral History)

After Kaumālapa’u harbor was built, “they still used Manele and the chute … Probably, since that was all built there. Yeah, Kaumalapau was strictly for pineapple shipping.” (Jean Forbes Adams, UHM Oral History)

With construction of the chute, the pipi could be driven along the cliffs to the chute and walked across the water onto the waiting boat. In addition to the “Pipi Chute,” a series of mortar salt making beds were built on the shore of the landing in the 1930s.

In May 1943, the salt making beds were moved to the cliffs. On the south side of the boat harbor were the salt beds and an old fence line that contained cattle as they were being driven down the chute for shipping to Honolulu. The salt beds were periodically filled with salt water, which evaporated and provided fresh sea salt for drying meat and treating hides.

On rough days, when the steamers couldn’t safely draw along the Mānele cliff side, cattle were driven into the ocean at Hulopo’e Beach. They were then tied up to a launch, which took them out to the steamer, and hoisted onto the boat for transport. Typically, anywhere from 30 to 70 cattle from Lānai were shipped in one trip.

By 1918, Charles Gay and family began experiments in planting pineapple on Lānai in the uplands near what would become Lānai City. Once harvested, the fruits would be taken by truck down to Mānele Landing via a stone and dirt trail that was almost impassable.

The crop was then loaded onto a small boat and transferred to Maui for canning. It was a difficult trip which caused the loss of much of the fruit, due to bruising. However, as a result of the Gay family’s success, James Dole’s Hawaiian Pineapple Company knew that the crop could be grown, and in 1922 Dole purchased almost the entire island of Lānai.

And the rest, as they say, “is history.”

© 2025 Ho‘okuleana LLC

Filed Under: Economy, Prominent People Tagged With: Hawaii, Lanai, George Munro, Manele, Lanai Ranch, Pipi Chute, Cattle Chute

August 1, 2025 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Swastikas … to Waikiki Surf-Boards

Founded in 1908 by William Butte, Pacific Ready-cut Homes, later Pacific System Homes, made ’kit’ homes.

They were considered one of the largest mass producers of pre-cut houses in the US; over the course of about 30-years, they delivered approximately 40,000-homes.

In the 1920s, working class people aspired to the “good life” of home and auto ownership and Pacific System was there to provide the little California bungalow that they were dreaming of. (AntiqueHome)

When the Stock Market crashed in October of 1929, Butte’s son Meyers was at Stanford and training for the Olympics in wrestling. Sales of homes were slow; the economic crash forced Meyers to come home and get involved with the family business.

When Meyers came on board, he convinced the family that manufacturing surfboards would be a good way to diversify the business. He began to change a small part of the production of Pacific System to surfboards.

Pacific System was one of the first companies to produce commercial surfboards.

Back then, boards were made of single pieces of redwood – and weighed about 100-lbs.

The first Pacific System boards were like the rest at Waikiki Beach – finless, single-slab redwood planks.

Recognizing the solid planks were too heavy, they looked for other options.

To lighten the load, Pacific System started making laminated surfboards; the big break came when they found a water-proof glue that would hold the slabs of wood used in board construction together. (Gault-Williams)

The new, lighter boards were constructed from glued and doweled balsa and redwood strips. They were 10 to 12-feet in length, 20-inches wide and a few inches thick (and weighed closer to 50-lbs.)

At first, the company logo was a swastika on the deck; the boards became known as ‘Swastika’ models.

“The Swastika boards were droolers,” shaper Dale Velzy is quoted as saying. “Everybody had homemades or hand-me-downs, so people really wanted a Pacific System.” (Velzy; Gault-Williams)

Although most boards continued to be custom made by surfers themselves, for the period leading into World War II, Swastikas became the most widely-used production board. (Gaul-Williams)

With the rise of Nazi Germany later in the decade, in about 1938, the swastika name and logos were dropped and the boards became known as ‘Waikiki Surf-Boards.’ (Motil)

Pacific System employed a number of well-known surfers, including Pete Peterson and Lorrin ‘Whitey’ Harrison. (They were the first of the hardcore California surfers to surf Waikiki.) (SurfMuseum)

“All ‘Waikiki’ boards are precision built with modern up-to-date machinery for a life-time of service in the world’s largest home-building plant.”

“The woods are specially selected. The Balsa wood is hand-sorted from finest imported stocks, scientifically kilned, laminated and cabinet finished by expert craftsmen under the personal direction of a professional surf-board aqualist.” (Pacific System Ad)

According to Butte’s son, his father took “great pride in the fact that he had pioneered the making of light surfboards.”

Pacific System models were popular and demand grew; they were shipping 60-boards a month to Hawaiʻi. (Marcus)

Pacific System Homes, as a Butte family enterprise, soon changed; although Pacific System still sold ready-cut houses throughout the thirties, homebuilding did not really recover until after World War II. (Flynn; Gault-William)

Founder/father William Butte died in 1936; sons Meyers and Robert ran the business for a while, then sold the company in 1942 and enlisted in the military. (Flynn; Gault-Williams)

© 2025 Hoʻokuleana LLC

Filed Under: Economy, Hawaiian Traditions Tagged With: Surf, Hawaii, Surfing

July 31, 2025 by Peter T Young 1 Comment

Kahalaopuna

Hanohano wale noʻoe
E ke anuenue o Mānoa
Ku kamahaʻo ʻo Kahalaopuna
Pua lei a ka ua me ka makani

Famous is the story of
The Rainbow Goddess of Mānoa
Kahalaopuna, the sacred one
Born of the wind and the rain
(Cabral, Boyd & Makuakane)

During the days of Kākuhihewa, ruling chief of O‘ahu from about 1640 to 1660, Kahaukani ((K) Mānoa wind) and Kaʻaukuahine ((W) Mānoa rain) were brother and sister twins.

When the children were grown up, their foster parents decided they should be united; they were married and Kahalaopuna was born to them – a uniting of the Mānoa wind and rain. She is deemed of semi-supernatural descent.

A house was built for her in a grove of sandalwood trees at Kahaiamano (some say the home was at Kahoiwai) on the way to Waiakeakua, where she lived with a few devoted servants. The house was embowered in vines and two poloulou (tabu staves) were kept standing beside the entrance (to indicate that they guarded from intrusion a person of high rank.)

Kahalaopuna “was so beautiful that a rainbow followed her wherever she went.” “Her cheeks were so red and her face so bright that a glow emanated therefrom which shone through the thatch of her house when she was in.

A rosy light seemed to envelop the house, and bright rays seemed to play over it constantly. When she went to bathe in the spring below her house, the rays of light surrounded her like a halo.”

She was betrothed in childhood to Kauhi, a young chief of Kailua.

When she was grown to young womanhood, she was so exquisitely beautiful that the people of the valley would make visits to the outer puloulou at the sacred precinct of Luaʻalaea, the land adjoining Kahaiamano, just to get a glimpse of the beauty.

Two men, Kumauna and Keawaʻa, had never seen Kahalaopuna, but they fell in love with her from the stories told of her. They would weave and deck themselves lei of maile, ginger and ferns and go bathing at Waikīkī and boast of their conquest of the famous beauty.

When the surf was up, it would attract people from all parts of the island. Kauhi, the betrothed of Kahalaopuna, was one of these. The time set for his marriage to Kahalaopuna was drawing near, and as yet he had not seen her, when he heard the assertions of the two men.

“How strange indeed was the behavior of your intended wife, Kahalaopuna! She went dancing two nights now, and on each night had a separate lover.”

Kauhi eventually believed them and he went into a jealous rage, stating he would kill Kahalaopuna.

He took her to the back of the valley; Kauhi struck her across the temple with a heavy bunch of hala nuts. The blow killed the girl instantly, and Kauhi hastily dug a hole under the side of the rock and buried her; then he started down the valley toward Waikiki.

As soon as he was gone, a large pueo (owl – a god and a relative of Kahalaopuna) immediately started digging out the body and restored life back to Kahalaopuna.

Kauhi then took Kahalaopuna to the ridge between Mānoa Valley and Nuʻuanu and killed her again. The owl, again, scratched her out and revived her. This was repeated again and again at Nuʻuanu and then in Kalihi. Finally, at Pōhākea, on the ʻEwa slope of Mount Kaʻala, he killed her again; this time the owl was not able to free and revive her and the owl left.

There had been another witness to Kauhi’s cruelties, ʻElepaio, a little green bird (a cousin to Kahalaopuna.) As soon as this bird saw that the owl had deserted the body of Kahalaopuna, it flew straight to her parent, Kahaukani and Kauakuahine, and told them all that had happened.

There was disbelief that anyone in his senses, including Kauhi, could be guilty of such cruelty to such a lovely, innocent being, and one, too, belonging entirely to himself.

In the meantime, the spirit of Kahalaopuna discovered itself to a party who were passing by; and one of them, a young man, moved with compassion, went to the tree indicated by the spirit, and, removing the dirt and roots, found the body.

He wrapped it in his kihei (shoulder scarf), and then covered it entirely with maile, ferns and ginger, and carried it to his home at Mōʻiliʻili. There, he submitted the body to his elder brother, who called upon two spirit sisters of theirs, with whose aid they finally succeeded in restoring her to life. They kept her last resurrection secret.

Kauhi was caught and subjected to a test. He lost and he and the two false accusers are put to death. His spirit, however, enters a man-eating shark, which lurks along the coast until it catches the girl out sea-bathing and finally consumes her body so that resuscitation is impossible.

Kumauna and Keawaʻa were, through the power of their family gods, transformed into the mountain peaks on the eastern side of Mānoa Valley.

Just above Puʻu o Manoa (Rocky Hill at the top of Punahou School) is another hill known as Puʻu Pueo. This was where the Owl God, Pueo, resided.

Today, you can still find the spirit of Kahalaopuna (the Princess of Mānoa) in the ānuenue (rainbows) spanning Mānoa Valley. (Information here is from Nakuina, Beckwith, Fornander, Thrum, Westervelt and Kalākaua.)

© 2025 Hoʻokuleana LLC

Waterfalls-back of Manoa-BM
Waterfalls-back of Manoa-BM
Surfing-Waikiki
Surfing-Waikiki
'Rainbow_above_Taro_Patch_in_Manoa_Valley'_by_D._Howard_Hitchcock,_1910
‘Rainbow_above_Taro_Patch_in_Manoa_Valley’_by_D._Howard_Hitchcock,_1910
Pueo
Pueo
manoa-rainbow
manoa-rainbow
Manoa_valley-BM
Manoa_valley-BM
Manoa_Valley-Baldwin-(DAGS)-Reg1068-1882-Google_Earth-Kaohiwai noted
Manoa_Valley-Baldwin-(DAGS)-Reg1068-1882-Google_Earth-Kaohiwai noted
Manoa_Valley-1935
Manoa_Valley-1935
Manoa_Valley_from_Waikiki,_oil_on_canvas_by_Enoch_Wood_Perry_Jr.-1860s
Manoa_Valley_from_Waikiki,_oil_on_canvas_by_Enoch_Wood_Perry_Jr.-1860s
Kahalaopuna - Manoa-Google Earth
Kahalaopuna – Manoa-Google Earth
Eastern Side of Manoa-Valley-from-Round-Top-Drive
Eastern Side of Manoa-Valley-from-Round-Top-Drive
Back of Manoa Valley
Back of Manoa Valley

Filed Under: Hawaiian Traditions, Place Names Tagged With: Hawaii, Oahu, Manoa, Kahalaopuna

July 30, 2025 by Peter T Young 1 Comment

Moʻikeha

Eia Hawai‘i, he moku, he kanaka
He kanaka Hawai‘i, e …
O Moʻikeha ka lani nana e noho
Noho kuʻu lani ia Hawai‘i – a …
Moʻikeha, the chief.

Behold Hawai‘i, an island, a man
A man is Hawaiʻi …
Moʻikeha is the chief who will live there
My chief shall dwell in Hawai‘i …
Moʻikeha, the chief.

By the time European explorers entered the Pacific in the 15th century almost all of the habitable islands had been settled for hundreds of years and oral traditions told of explorations, migrations and travels across this immense watery world.

Double-hulled canoes were seaworthy enough to make voyages of over 2,000-miles along the longest sea roads of Polynesia, like the one between Hawai‘i and Tahiti.

And though these canoes had less carrying capacity than the broad-beamed ships of the European explorers, the Polynesian canoes were faster: one of Captain Cook’s crew estimated a canoe could sail “three miles to our two.” (Kawaharada)

The motivations of the voyagers varied. Some left to explore the world or to seek adventure. Others departed to find new land or new resources because of growing populations or prolonged droughts and other ecological disasters in their homelands.

Within the sphere of known islands, others sailed to wage war or seek vengeance, to escape political persecution or unhappy love affairs, to find a wife or visit relatives, or to obtain prized objects, like red feathers, not available at home.

Whatever the motivation for voyaging, the challenge was always the same – the huge, trackless expanses of sun-heated saltwater capable of generating fierce winds and battering waves.

The challenge was met again and again by Pacific island voyagers, long before sailors in other parts of the world ventured beyond the coastlines of continents or inland seas and lakes. (PVS)

Born at Waipi‘o on the island of Hawai‘i, Moʻikeha sailed to Kahiki (Tahiti), the home of his grandfather Maweke, after a disastrous flood. (Cultural Surveys)

Moʻikeha was an aliʻi nui (high chief) from Moa‘ulanuiakea, Tahiti, where he lived with his wife Kapo. They had a child named Laʻamaikahiki.

Moʻikeha became infatuated with Luʻukia, but she created some domestic difficulties; Moʻikeha directed his foster-son Kamahualele to ready a double-hulled canoe to go to Hawaiʻi.

Moʻikeha planned to take his sisters, Makapuʻu and Makaʻaoa, his two younger brothers, Kumukahi and Haʻehaʻe, his priest Moʻokini, and his prominent men (na kanaka koikoi) – navigators (ho‘okele), favorite priests (kahuna punahele) and his lookouts (kiu nana,) who would spy out land.

Early one morning at dawn, at the rise of the navigation star (ka hoku ho‘okelewa‘a; possibly Sirius), Moʻikeha boarded his double-hulled canoe with his fellow voyagers (hoa holo), and left Tahiti.

After the canoe landed at Hilo, Kumukahi and Haʻehaʻe were charmed by the land and told Moʻikeha they wanted to remain there, so Moʻikeha let them off the canoe.

Soon after, Moʻikeha set sail from Hilo, passing along the north coast of Hawai‘i until he arrived at Kohala. Moʻokini and Kaluawilinau wanted to reside at Kohala, so Mōʻīkeha put them ashore there.

He sailed on to the east coast of Maui and landed at Hāna. Honua‘ula wanted to reside there, so he was allowed to remain behind. Moʻikeha sailed on.

Moʻikeha and his people continued on their journey. Arriving at O‘ahu, Mo‘ikeha’s sisters Makapu‘u and Makaaoa said: “We wish to reside here, where we can see the cloud drifts of Tahiti.” So Makapu‘u and Makaaoa were allowed to remain on O‘ahu.

Moʻikeha left O‘ahu and sailed to Kauai, landing at Wailua. The canoe was brought ashore and the travellers got off. Meanwhile the locals were gathering in a crowd to go surf-riding at Ka-makaiwa. Among them were the two daughters of the ali‘i nui of Kauai, Ho‘oipoikamalanai and Hinauʻu.

When the two sisters saw Moʻikeha, they immediately fell in love with him, and they decided to take him for their husband; Moʻikeha was also struck. Their father approved.

Kila, Moʻikeha’s favorite of three sons by the Kauai chiefess Ho‘oipoikamalanai, was born at Kapaʻa and was said to be the most handsome man on the island. It was Kila who was sent by his father back to Kahiki to slay his old enemies and retrieve a foster son, the high chief La‘amaikahiki.

Moʻikeha settled at Kapaʻa Kauai as ruling chief of the island. Upon his death, Kila, his son, became ruling chief of Kauai. (McGregor) After Moʻikeha’s death, his corpse was taken to the cliffs of Haʻena where it was deposited.

After returning to Tahiti, then sailing again to Hawaiʻi, Laʻamaikahiki set sail again, going up the Kona coast of Hawaiʻi Island. It was on this visit that Laʻamaikahiki introduced hula dancing, accompanied by the drum, to Hawaiʻi. (Bentley)

“To Kauai from far-off Kahiki came Laʻa to see his father Moʻikeha. With him came the first drum ever seen in these islands. La’amaikahiki landed at a small canoe landing called Ahukini, a little south of Hanamaulu bay and the present ahukini landing. His drum was taken to the heiau of Ka Lae o Ka Manu at Wailua.” (Hula Historical Perspectives)

Laʻamaikahiki lived on Kauai for a while. Then he moved to Kahikinui on Maui (the place was named for Laʻamaikahiki’s homeland, in honor of him.) As the place was too windy, however, Laʻamaikahiki left for the west coast of the island of Kahoʻolawe, where he lived until he finally returned to Tahiti.

Because Laʻamaikahiki lived on Kahoʻolawe and set sail for home from that island, the ocean to the west of Kahoʻolawe is called Kealaikahiki, “The Road to Tahiti.”

Laʻamaikahiki took his brother Kila and the bones of their father to Tahiti with him. The bones were to be deposited in the mountain of Kapaahu, Tahiti. Laʻamaikahiki and Kila also lived there until their death. Little more was heard about these two brothers. (Lots of information here is from PVS, Cultural Surveys and Fornander.)

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Moikeha_the_Voyaging_King-(HerbKane)
Moikeha_the_Voyaging_King-(HerbKane)

Filed Under: Ali'i / Chiefs / Governance, Hawaiian Traditions Tagged With: Hawaii, Kauai, Kapaa, Alii, Moikeha

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