Hawaiian Traditions | Images of Old Hawaiʻi

June 12, 2026 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Moon Nights

Reasoning from observations has been important to modern scientific practice at least since the time of Aristotle (384–322 BC.) A scientific process or scientific method requires observations of nature and formulating and testing the hypothesis. It consists of following four steps.

Scientists observe something and ask questions about a natural phenomenon (scientific observation,) make hypothesis, make predictions about logical consequences of the hypothesis, test the predictions by observational study and create a conclusion on the basis of the information gathered. (Stanford)

Hawaiians in traditional times also made observations of the world around them. Most of the makaʻāinana (common people) were farmers, a few were fishermen. Tenants cultivated smaller crops for family consumption, to supply the needs of chiefs and provide tributes.

They followed a systematic and careful regimentation of planting in accordance with what had been observed over time, noting the influence of the stages of the moon had on farming and fishing.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c0/Lunar_libration_with_phase2.gif

Following is a summary noted in Handy & Handy with Pukui for planting according to moon phases, together with the names of the ‘Moon Nights,’ are compiled by them from notes derived from a variety of sources:

Hilo (first ‘night.’) The new moon appears ‘slender and twisted’ (hilo.) Fish ‘hide’ in the lagoons on this night, but it is good for deep-sea fishing; food maturing underground will ‘hide,’ but some recommend the day following Hilo for planting, especially sweet potatoes and taro, although they will be small when mature as the new moon is small. This was the first night of the kapu period of Ku.

Hoaka (second ‘night.’) The name means ‘faint light’ or ‘casting a shadow.’ Ghosts cast shadows and frighten fish away. The second night of the Ku kapu.

Ku kahi, Ku lua, Ku kolu, Ku pau (third, fourth, fifth, and sixth ‘nights’.), The names mean ‘First Ku’ ‘Second Ku,’ ‘Third Ku,’ and ‘Last Ku.’ The kapu period of Ku ended with ‘First Ku,’ Recommended for planting sweet potato and taro, which will grow ‘upright’ (ku) in the soil. Recommended also for fishing.

Taros planted on this first night will have but one shoot (ku kahi ), second night will have two (ku lua), and third night will have three (ku kolu.), Bananas planted these nights will stand erect (ku.) The ocean currents change.

‘Ole ku kahi, ‘Ole ku lua, ‘Ole ku kolu, ‘Ole pau (First ‘Ole, Second, Third, Last; seventh to tenth ‘nights’). The tides run high and the sea is rough. Fishing is poor. Not recommended for planting or fishing, for ‘ole means ‘nothing, without, nonproductive.’ Recommended for weeding. However, planting at ‘Ole pau (‘end of non-productivity,’) especially for breadfruit.

Huna (eleventh ‘night’), The name means ‘hidden’ and is recommended for root plants which will flourish, hidden under dense foliage, and especially for gourds which will be hidden under their leaves. Recommended also for fishing, for the fish are hiding-in their holes.

Mohalu (twelfth ‘night.’) Good for planting flowers, which will be round and perfect like the moon all this night; and gourds, potatoes and taro will grow well. Fruits, fish, and seaweed were kapu, for this night was sacred to Kane the life-giver. This is a good ‘night,’ for fishing. ‘The sea is covered with fishing canoes’ (after abolition of kapu).

Hua (thirteenth ‘night’), The name means ‘fruit’ and ‘seed,’ hence it was fruitful on land and sea, especially for many-seeded gourds, The moon is egg-shaped (hua), This night is sacred to Lono, Good fishing.

Akua (fourteenth ‘night.’. All things reproduce abundantly (ho‘oakua.) Fishing is good. This is a kapu night when the gods (akua) are about, and offerings are made to them to increase food (ho‘oulu‘ai) and fish (ho‘oulu i‘a).

Hoku (fifteenth ‘night.’) Hoku kua means ‘lined up close together,’ hence root plants and bananas will be prolific, but fruit will be small. Good for trees in general. Good fishing.
Mahealani (sixteenth ‘night’: full moon.) Mahea means ‘whiter,’ and the plants are so prolific and large that they say ‘whither can we grow?’ Currents run strong, but fishing is good. Good for all work.

Kulu (seventeenth ‘night.’) Kulu means ‘to drop.’ The banana sheath drops off this day exposing the new bunch. Good for potatoes and melons. Currents are strong, but it is a good time for fishing. This was the time for offering first fruits to the gods.

La‘au ku kahi, La‘au ku lua, La‘au pau (First La‘au, Second, Last: eighteenth to twentieth ‘night’). Sweet potatoes, melons, and gourds will run to woody (la‘au) vines. For medicines (la‘au) this is a time favored for gathering herbs and for their preparation by the medical kahuna.

Good for planting banana and other trees (la‘au): the fruit will be so heavy that poles (la‘au) will be required to support them. Favorable for fishing. Breadfruit planted in these days will be hard and woody (la‘au.) Some say bananas will be hard and woody. Some say La‘au pau is a good day for all planting.

‘Ole ku kahu, ‘Ole ku lua, ‘Ole ku pau (First ‘Ole, Seconds, Last: twenty-first to twenty-third ‘night.’) Not recommended for planting or fishing. It is windy and tides run high. A good time for weeding. ‘Lazy days for farmers.’ ‘Ole pau and kaloa ku kahi are the kapu periods of Kanaloa or Kaloa, when offerings are made with prayers.

Kaloa ku kahi, Koloa ku lua, Koloa pau (First kaloa, Second, Last: twenty-fourth to twenty-sixth ‘night.’) Good for fishing. Makaloa and ‘ole shellfish are plentiful. It is a good time to plant bamboo for braiding hats. Plants with long stems (banana, sugar cane, bamboo) will grow long. Potato and yam will run to long vines (ka loa.) Good for wauke, which will develop long stems (ka loa). Pandanus will develop long leaves. The first Kaloa is sacred to Kanaloa with mild kapu.

Kane (twenty-seventh ‘night’). This and the night following Lono, are sacred to Kane. This period was devoted to prayers to Kane and Lono for health and food. The Kane kapu was rigorous.

Lono (twenty-eighth ‘night.’) Prayers for rain. Recommended for melons and gourds (which were ‘bodies’ of Lono.)

Mauli (twenty-ninth ‘night.’) Uli (dark) implies rich, dark-green vegetation. Tides are low. Fishing is good, good day for marriages.

Muku (thirtieth ‘night.’) Bananas will bear bunches one muku long (from tip of fingers of one hand to opposite elbow.) Not recommended for sweet potatoes. Trees and sugar cane will prosper. Fishing is good. The moon is cut off, muku (vanishes.)

The planting calendar may be summarized as follows : On the Ku nights potatoes will grow erect (ku,) also taro. The ‘Ole nights are periods of scarcity (‘ole ) on land and sea. On Huna, roots and gourds will prosper, hidden (huna) under earth or dense foliage. Hua (fruit, seed) means plenty, Akua (deity) supernatural abundance.

In Hoku the fruits will be lined up (hoku hua.) In Mahealani roots will ask ‘ ‘whither can we grow (mahea, whither ; lani (under) heaven?’ Kulu (drop) implies dropping of the fruit sheath.

The la‘au are good for woody growth (la‘au means wood.) The second series of ‘Ole are again periods of dearth. Kaloa indicates long vines and stems. Kane and Lono, nights of prayer for plenty, health, and rain. Mauli implies dark green (uli) vegetation, and Muku long bunches of bananas.

During each month (moon, mahina) there are four kapu periods. Families who worshiped one of the major gods to whom the ‘nights’ were dedicated abstained from work and play and prayed to their gods at the altar (kuahu) in the men’s house (mua.)

The kapu periods were:
On Hila, Hoaka and Kukahi (1st-3rd,) the Ku kapu.
On Mohalu and Hua (12th-13th,) , the Hua (Lono) kapu.
On ‘Ole pau and Kalo aku kahi (23rd-24th,) the Kanaloa kapu.
On Kane and Lono (27th-28th), the Kane kapu.

June 10, 2026 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

The Hawaiian Club

The Hawaiian Club (sometimes referred to as the Hawaiian Club of Boston) was formed in January, 1866, by a few gentlemen, who having, at different periods during the preceding forty years, resided at the Hawaiian Islands, felt that strong attachment for them which is so general among those who have once lived there.

Its purpose was to promote social intercourse among the friends of Hawaii, resident in or visiting Boston and vicinity, and to advance the interests of the United States at the Hawaiian Islands, and the welfare of the Hawaiian nation, by collecting and diffusing information bearing thereupon, and by all other honorable means. (Articles of Organization)

There were 15-original members, and by 1868 the total had increased to 45. Although the club was in existence for many years, this volume of papers was their first (and only) publication. A note on the reverse of the title page says, ‘Four hundred fifty copies plain, fifty club copies (on) tinted (paper.)’

Their object was partly to revive pleasant associations by occasional meetings to discuss the past and present condition of Hawaii, and partly to advance the prosperity of the country and the interests of the United States and her citizens there.

In furtherance of these objects the Club met once a month, usually in the city of Boston, but occasionally in a more social way at the country residence of some one of its members. It has corresponded with the friends of Hawaii, resident at the Islands.

It has sought, through delegations at Washington, and through newspaper publications and personal interviews of its officers and members with men of influence, to further every measure which would benefit the Islands.

One such was the establishment of steam mail communication between San Francisco and Honolulu, and the negotiation and ratification of a treaty of commercial reciprocity between the United States and Hawaiian Governments.

One interesting issue raised by the Hawaiian Club relates to the Kamehameha Statue – an ‘error’ in how the King is dressed.

“When the Kamehameha had been modeled by Gould, the attention of the Hawaiian Club of Boston … was called to the completed model and it was noticed that the great Moi was represented wearing a sort of apron”.

“(T)he sculptor was informed that this was by no means a correct costume of the time of Kamehameha and would appear ridiculous to the modern Hawaiian.”

It turns out, when the statue was being prepared, King Kalakaua had recently acquired “Malo of Kaumualiʻi” and he selected that to be photographed for the sculptor’s use, providing the model with an ordinary malo at the same time.

William Tufts Brigham – the first director of the Bernice P. Bishop Museum – had written a book on Hawaiian featherwork; he had also been Hawaiian Club president for ten years.

His initial reaction about the “Malo of Kaumualiʻi” was, “how could a band four yards long, made as this is with feathers on both sides be disposed on the wearer? The term malo is certainly misleading”. He suggested it was rather a cordon or sash.

“In the statue the cordon passes from the pendent end up behind the portion used as a waist-band, over the left shoulder, outside the cloak, instead of returning down the back to form the belt as it should have done with the end tucked in to tighten the band, it leaves this belt as an independent member and passes down over the cloak to trail on the ground!” (Brigham)

“The ordinary malo is shown on the statue, a proof that the cordon was not used as a malo, an impossible feat. Perhaps no competent critic saw the model after the cordon was added, or it was thought best not to remove the band after the cast was made.”

“As there was no living Hawaiian who had seen such a cordon worn either by Kamehameha or Kaumualiʻi, the absence of criticism may be understood.” (Brigham)

It turns out Brigham found out it was not the sculptor’s fault, but, rather, the photographer who sent the statue maker photos of what was to be designed (Gould simply sculpted what the photographer provided.)

“The ungraceful position of the left hand was changed by the artist but he could not have been expected to be versed in the peculiarities of ancient Hawaiian adornment. In the photograph sent not only was the cordon placed over the cloak but the main ornament, the terminal set with teeth was not visible in front!”

“I can only suppose that King Kalakaua in his apprenticeship to royalty as assistant chamberlain to Kamehameha V, never saw such a cordon adorning his royal master who was greatly averse to personal display as I was convinced by my acquaintance with that monarch, who probably never saw the cordon in question.” (Brigham)

“The final arrangement must be based on esthetic rather than historical grounds. In fact, the decorated end of the sash drags on the ground behind the figure. The other end has had to be supplemented with a fictitious terminal band to be presentable in front.”

“If you look closely, the final arrangement is impossible without two sashes: a long one from malo front over the shoulder and down to the ground, and a short, separate belt.” (Later noted by Charlot.)

Traditionally, a sash is worn by first draping the sash over the left shoulder to where it falls between the knees. Then the remaining length is wrapped around the waist and over the front flap of the sash to around the back, fed behind the part over the shoulder, and the remaining hangs down in the back (at knee length.) (San Nicolas) After that, you put the cape on over it all.

As attention is drawn to the Kamehameha Statue, with lei draping and anticipation of Kamehameha Day, folks might now all look at the Kamehameha Statue a little closer now. (The painting pattern of the sash on the Kapaʻau Statue illustrates the error best, but it is evident on each.)

Most of the attention has been to the front of the statue; but we have overlooked a little bit of history without looking at the sash as it simply flows from the front over the shoulder (over the cape) to a pile in the back (rather than in the traditional wearing of the sash (wrapped before the cape is worn; under the cape around the waist and looped down.))

June 7, 2026 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

ʻAukelenuiaʻīkū

The waters of Kāne surround us constantly and provide life for all living things. The story of ʻAukelenuiaʻīkū (ʻAukele) is one of a hero’s quest to find these waters and to learn what every young man must know to be mature in this coming-of-age tale. (MACC)

Iku was the father, a great chief, and Kapapaiakea was the mother, from whom twelve children were born. Kuaihelani was the country in which they lived. The names of the children were: Kekamakahinuiaiku, Kuaiku, Nohoaiku, Heleaiku, Kapukapuaiku, Heaaiku, Lonoheaiku, Naaiku, Noiaiku, Ikumailani and ʻAukelenuiaʻīkū, aIl males; and Kaomeaaiku, a female.

From the first-born child to the one just ahead of ʻAukele, Iku never took them up in his arms, never spoke of leaving the kingdom to any of them, nor did he make much of any of them.

But at the birth of ʻAukele, Iku took the greatest interest in him, took care of him, took him up in his arms, and to him he willed all his honor and glory and the kingdom. Because of this show of favoritism on their father’s part toward ʻAukelenuiaʻīkū, his brothers and sister hated him and they tried to devise some way of getting rid of him.

He wanted to join his brothers in a wrestling match, but was forbidden by the father, who fears their jealousy. He steals away and shoots an arrow into their midst; it is a twisted arrow, theirs are jointed.

The brothers are angry, but when one of them strikes the lad, his own arm is broken. The younger brother takes up each one in turn and throws him into the sea.

The brothers pretend friendship and invite him into the house. Then, they throw him into the pit of the ancestress Kamo‘oinanea who eats men, but she spares her young relative, and described to him the land ruled over by Namakaokaha‘i (The eyes of Kaha‘i.)

She gives him a food-providing leaf, an axe, a knife, a bit of her tail which contains her “real body” (kino maoli), her feather skirt (pāʻu) and kahili which have the power to protect him from flames and to reduce his enemies to ashes, and a box containing the god Lonoikouali‘i to warn him of approaching danger.

When his brothers see him return safe from the pit they determine to flee to foreign lands. They make one more attempt to kill him by shutting him into a water hole, but one soft-hearted brother lets him out. ʻAukele then persuades the brothers to let him accompany them.

On the way he feeds them with “food and meat” from his club, Kaiwakaapu. They sail eight months, touch at Holaniku. where they get awa, sugar cane, bananas, and coconuts, and arrive in four months more at Lalakeenuiakane, the land of Queen Namakaokahai.

The queen is guarded by four brothers in bird form (Kanemoe, Kaneapua, Leapua and Kahaumana) by two maid servants in animal form, and by a dog, Moela. The whole party is reduced to ashes at the shaking of the queen’s skirt, except Aukele, who escapes and by his quick wit wins the friendship of the queen’s maids and her brothers.

The next adventure is after the water of life to restore the brothers to life. The first trip is unsuccessful. Instead of flying in a straight line between the sky (lewa) and space (nenelu—literally, mud) ʻAukele falls into space and is obliged to cling to the moon for support.

Meanwhile his wife thinks him dead and has summoned Night, Day, Sun, Stars, Thunder, Rainbow, Lightning, Water-spout, Fog, Fine rain, etc., to mourn for him. Then, through her supernatural knowledge she hears him declare to the moon, her grandfather, Kaukihikamalama, his birth and ancestry, and learns for the first time that they are related.

On the next trip he reaches a deep pit, at the bottom of which is the well of everlasting life, the property of Kamohoalii.

It is guarded by two maternal uncles of ʻAukele, Kanenaiau and Hawewe, and a maternal aunt, Luahinekaikapu, the sister of the lizard grandmother, who is blind.

ʻAukele steals the bananas she is roasting, dodges her anger, and restores her sight. She paints up his hands to look like Kamohoalii’s and the guards at the well hand him the water gourd.

His own attempt to use the water to restore his brothers and nephew is unsuccessful, but, with the few drops remaining, his wife brings them all to life and he shares the rule with them and even gives them his wife as well.

As time passes, ʻAukele is attracted by his wife’s young cousins Pele and Hiʻiaka and pretends to go fishing in order to meet them. His wife discovers this and drives them from the country.

They migrate first to Kauai, and flee from island to island until they finally reach Hawaii. Soon after, ʻAukele decides to return to his old home, Kuaihelani.

Kuaiheilani, suggested as a mythical place, is the traditional name for what we refer to as Midway Atoll. The origin of this name can be traced to an ancient homeland of the Hawaiian people, located somewhere in central Polynesia. (Kikiloi)

The image shows the Hawaii archipelago. (Lots of Information from Fornander, Beckwith, Westervelt and Smithsonian)

May 26, 2026 by Peter T Young 1 Comment

Pulu

Hāpuʻu is an endemic tree fern found in wet forests in association with mature ʻōhiʻa at elevations from about 1,000-feet to 6,000-feet.

The tree can range from heights to about 7-35 feet. The fronds rise up high to about thirty feet or more and are 3-9 feet in diameter. The long green fronds of the tree grow to be about 12 feet long.

Young stems were formerly used to make hats; the starchy core has been used for cooking and laundry, the outer fibrous part to line or form baskets for plants. (Pukui) The edible starch in the core of the trunk and the young leaves were eaten during the time of famine. (KSBE)

The young unfurled fronds are densely covered with soft golden colored, wool-like fibers called pulu; Hawaiians stuffed bodies of their dead with pulu after removing vital organs. (Pukui)

Later, pulu became a commodity, “Pulu, or fern down, is also an important and staple article of export. This soft, yellow, silken down, gathered from the exhaustless fern fields of Hilo and Puna, is much used in California for upholstery as a substitute for feathers, wool and hair.” (Titus Coan, March 5, 1858)

“The pulu of commerce is obtained from this fern, and is extensively used … in the making of beds and mattresses, and stuffing of sofas and chairs.” (Baxley, 1865)

“More than two hundred thousand pounds of this article has been shipped from Hilo during the past year. Men, women, and children engage in collecting it, and many of our usual villages are deserted for months at a time while the people are collecting pulu in the jungle.” (Titus Coan, March 5, 1858)

“(O)nly a small quantity, a few ounces, is found on each plant, the growth of about four years. The labor of gathering pulu was slow and tedious. When picked it was wet and had to be brought down to the lowlands to be dried. The natives were employed in gathering it, men, women and children, living for weeks at a time in the mountains, in crude shelter huts.” (Thrum, 1929)

“In the early sixties (1860s) the business of picking and packing pulu had become so important that trails cut by the many natives thus employed opened the crater country far more than ever before.” (Bingham; Holmes)

“In the natural state the pulu forms a snuff-colored silken envelope for the young and tender branches of the fern, which grow from the top of the stalk or trunk, forming beautiful scrolls until of sufficient strength to supersede the older branches and leaves that droop on all sides like graceful plumes.”

“In gathering pulu the natives cut from the top of the fern trunk the tender scrolls in mass, then strip off the soft fibrous wrapper that protects them, which they loosen by picking, and expose for several weeks on platforms to the rain and sun.”

“From two to four pounds are gathered from a full-sized tree. When perfectly cleansed and dry, it is bagged and sometimes baled for shipping, and is much sought after for the California market.” (Baxley, 1865)

“I have ridden through vast fields of this species of fern in the vicinity of the volcano Kilauea, that extended as far as the eye could see.”

“On the edges of these fields nearest the volcanoes the lava has flowed and covered large tracks, forming plateaus upon which the natives have built pleasant hamlets, and are carrying on a lucrative business in gathering and drying the pulu for shipment to San Francisco, where it is extensively used for filling mattresses.”

“From a single fern they gather a tuft about the size of a man’s hand and spread it on the grass and lava banks, where it is thoroughly dried, then bagged and transferred on the backs of mules to the sea coasts. There it is pressed in bales for shipment like cotton.” (The Pulu for Mattresses, Scientific American, August 23, 1862; Uyeoka)

“The most remarkable of the gigantic ferns of this belt are the great tree-ferns, with branches four or five feet long. At the foot of these trees is found a soft, feather-like substance, called pulu which forms an article of considerable trade. It is used extensively in California for bedding …” (The Merchants’ Magazine and Commercial Review, October 1, 1864; Uyeoka)

“(P)ulu gatherers, who are scattered through the forests in all directions, from one to three miles from the volcano;” making “the wilderness of Kilauea”” one of his “stations in pastoral tours.”

“From Kilauea I went about ten miles, into the highland forests of Hawaii, where there was another camp of about sixty pulu gatherers. This camp is a romantic one. It is a little opening of field lava and sand, one-fourth of a mile in diameter, nearly circular, and surrounded by tall forests and jungle.” (Coan, Missionary Herald, 1864-1865)

Pulu picking could be dangerous, “As I followed a path made by the pulu-pickers through the dense forest, I came upon a large hole on the edge of the path which proved to be the entrance to a cave of great depth.”

“The path had been turned to one side to avoid it, and in the dark it would be exceedingly dangerous. Such holes are common in this part of Puna, and natives occasionally disappear mysteriously. Brushing through the bushes I came to a precipice forming the edge of a crater nearly three quarters of a mile in diameter and seven hundred feet deep.” (Brigham, 1868)

Likewise the market for pulu changed, “Those who have used it, however, are substituting hair or straw on account of the unhealthiness of the pulu, which, from its heat, has the same ill effects as feathers, and it popularly thought to increase rheumatism.”

“It has been recently exported to China in considerable quantities, and it is not improbable that as the demand from California decreases that from China will increase. The natives are largely engaged in gathering it, and are employed more or less by the Chinese merchants of Honolulu …” (The Merchants’ Magazine and Commercial Review, October 1, 1864; Uyeoka)

“According to the customs tables, the last year of pulu exports was 1884, with but 465 pounds, the two years previous being without any, so that practically the life of the industry had an existence of but thirty-one years (with exports) ranging generally from 200,000 to 649,000 pounds.” (Thrum, 1929)

May 20, 2026 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Pele’s Hair

“In the afternoon, Messrs. Thurston and Bishop walked out in a NW direction, till they reached the point that forms the northern boundary or the bay, on the eastern side of which Kairua (Kailua) is situated. It runs three or four miles into the sea; is composed entirely of lava …”

“… and was formed by an eruption from one of the large craters on the top of Mouna Huararai, (Hualālai,) which, about twenty-three years ago, inundated several villages, destroyed a number of plantations and extensive fish-ponds, filled up a deep bay twenty miles in length, and formed the present coast.”

“An Englishman, who has resided thirty-eight years in the islands, and who witnessed the above eruption, has frequently, told us he was astonished at the irresistible impetuosity of the torrent. Stone walls, trees, and houses, all gave way before it ….”

“Numerous offerings were presented, and many hogs, thrown alive into the stream, to appease the anger of the gods, by whom they supposed it was directed, and to stay its devastating course. All seemed unavailing, until one day the king Tamehameha (Kamehameha) … as the most valuable offering he could make, cut off part of his own hair, which was always considered sacred, and threw it into the torrent.”

“A day or two after, the lava ceased to flow. The gods, it was thought, were satisfied; and the king acquired no small degree of influence over the minds of the people, who, from this circumstance, attributed their escape from threatened destruction to his supposed interest with the deities of the volcanoes.” (Ellis, 1823)

Others did the same in offering hair to Pele. “This volcano, which has the name of Peli (Pele) from the goddess supposed to inhabit it, is also called by the natives, Kairauea Nui (Kilauea,) or the greater, and the extinguished crater, Kairauea in, or the little …”

“Night increased the magnificence, perhaps the horror, of the scene. The volcano caused … ‘a terrible light in the air.’ The roar occasioned by the escape of the pent up elements, and the fearful character of the surrounding scenery, suited with that light; and all impressed us with the sense of the present Deity …”

“No wonder, then, that the uninstructed natives had long worshipped, in this place, the mysterious powers of nature. Here it was that they supposed the gods of the Island had their favourite abodes, and that, from this centre of their power, they often shook the land, when it pleased them to pass under ground to visit the sea, and take delight in open places.”

“The first pair who arrived at the Island, with the animals and fruits necessary for their subsistence, met the fire gods, say they, on their first landing, and propitiated them by offerings of part of their provisions. …

“Hence no ohelo berry was eaten on Peli, till some had been offered to the goddess of the same name: the sandal-wood was not cut, nor the fern roots dug, without propitiating her by locks of hair, and often more precious things.”

“Frequently the hog and the dog were sacrificed to procure her favour; and never was the ground disturbed or any thing carried away from Kairauea.” (Byron, 1825)

But these offerings of hair to Pele are not the focus of this summary; this is about Pele’s Hair – a volcanic phenomenon that internationally carries the name of ‘Pele.’

Missionary Titus Coan describes Pele’s Hair: “All at once the scene changes, the central portion begins to swell and rise into a grayish dome, until it bursts like a gigantic bubble, and out rushes a sea of crimson fusion …”

“… which pours down to the surrounding wall with an awful seething and roaring, striking this mural barrier with fury, and with such force that its sanguinary jets are thrown back like a repulsed charge upon a battle-field, or tossed into the air fifty to a hundred feet high, to fall upon the upper rim of the pit in a hail-storm of fire.”

“This makes the filamentous vitrifaction called ‘Pele’s hair.’”

“The sudden sundering of the fusion into thousands of particles, by the force that thus ejects the igneous masses upward, and their separation when in this fused state, spins out vitreous threads like spun glass.”

“These threads are light, and when taken up by brisk winds, are often kept floating and gyrating in the atmosphere, until they come into a calmer stratum of air …”

“… when they fall over the surrounding regions, sometimes in masses in quiet and sheltered places. They are sometimes carried a hundred miles, as is proved by their dropping on ships at sea.”

“This ‘hair’ takes the color of the lava of which it is formed. Some of it is a dark gray, some auburn, or it may be yellow, or red, or of a brick color.” (Titus Coan)

Scientists say Pele’s hair is “volcanic glass that has been stretched into thin strands by the physical pulling apart of molten material during eruptions. Most commonly it forms during fire fountain activity.” (Batiza)

Thin strands of volcanic glass drawn out from molten lava have long been called Pele’s hair, named for Pele, the Hawaiian goddess of volcanoes.

A single strand, with a diameter of less than 0.5 mm, may be as long as 2 m. The strands are formed by the stretching or blowing-out of molten basaltic glass from lava, usually from lava fountains, lava cascades, and vigorous lava flows (for example, as pāhoehoe lava plunges over a small cliff and at the front of an ‘a‘a flow.)

Pele’s hair is often carried high into the air during fountaining, and wind can blow the glass threads several tens of kilometers from a vent. (USGS)