Images of Old Hawaiʻi

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Nanaʻulu – Ulu

He aina loaʻa i ka moana
I hoea mai loko o ka ale
I ka halehale poi pu a Kanaloa
He Koakea i halelo i ka wai
I lou i ka makau a ka lawaia
A ka lawaia nui o Kapaahu
A ke lawaia nui o Kapuheeuanuu-la
A pae na waa, kau mai
E holo, e ai ia Hawaiʻi he moku
He moku Hawaii

A land that was found in the ocean
That was thrown up from the sea
From the very depths of Kanaloa
The white coral in the watery caves
That was caught on the hook of the fisherman,
The great fisherman of Kapaahu,
The great fisherman, Kapuheeuanuu
The canoes touch the shore, come on board
Go and possess Hawaii, the island
An island is Hawaii
(From the chant of Makuakaumana when Pāʻao’s invites a chief to come and live on Hawaiʻi.)

Papa and Wākea are the ancestors of the Hawaiian people. “Papa” in Hawaiʻi is “a word applied to any flat surface,” especially to those undersea foundation layers from which new lands are said to rise.

This probably relates to the successive generations of mankind born out of the vast waters of the spirit world and identified through their family leaders with the lands which they inhabit.

In the South Seas, Papa is a goddess of earth and the underworld and mother of gods.  Wākea is god of light and of the heavens who “opens the door of the sun”.  (Beckwith)

“In the genealogy of Wākea it is said that Papa gave birth to these Islands. Another account has it that this group of islands were not begotten, but really made by the hands of Wākea himself.”  (Malo)

“Papa gives birth to a gourd, which forms a calabash and its cover. Wākea throws up the cover and it becomes the sky. He throws up the pulp and it becomes the sun; the seeds, and they become the stars …”

“… the white lining of the gourd, and it becomes the moon; the ripe white meat, and it becomes the clouds; the juice he pours over the clouds and it becomes rain. Of the calabash itself Wākea makes the land and the ocean.”  (Kamakau)

Hawaiian legends suggest the place to which Hawaiians frequently sailed for centuries was usually Kahiki or Tahiti, the old home of the family of ruling chiefs.    (Westerfelt)

Thirteen generations after Papa and Wākea, Kiʻi and his wife Hinakoula appear.  Kiʻi was king in the Southern Pacific Islands – at Tahiti, the chief island of the Society group.   (Westerfelt)  They had two sons, Nanaʻulu and Ulu – they came to the Hawaiian Islands and established a dynasty of high chiefs.

It has been suggested that Ulu remained in the southern islands and that Nanaulu alone found his way to Hawaii; but the frequent use of the name Ulu in the genealogies of the chiefs of the two large islands, Hawaiʻi and Maui, would support the position that the brothers, sailing together, found Hawaiʻi.  (Westerfelt)

Eleven generations from Nanaʻulu and Ulu, Nanamaoa, of the southern Ulu line, pioneered the first migratory influx to the Hawaiian Islands. He was a warlike chief who succeeded in establishing his family in power on Hawaiʻi, Maui and Oʻahu.  (Sands)

Later on Oʻahu, three major competing districts developed out of earlier small and independent political units. These districts were Kona, Koʻolau (later divided into Koʻolauloa and Koʻolaupoko), and Greater Ewa (the later districts of ʻEwa, Waianae and Waialua.)

About AD 1100, thirteen generations from Nanaʻulu and Ulu came Maweke of the northern Nanaʻulu line. Maweke is one of the main figures in the voyaging era of Hawaiian traditions.  With Maweke, the lineage of ancient Polynesia was transformed into a distinctly Hawaiian lineage.

Likewise, about this time on the Island of Hawaiʻi, the island was divided into competing district-sized chiefdoms. In general, there were three centers of power during this period:  Waipiʻo Valley in the windward region, Kona in the leeward area and Kohala on the northern end of the Island.

Pilikaeaea, the chief, brought by Pāʻao from Tahiti to rule Hawaiʻi, first established his reign in Waipiʻo Valley.  Through inter-marriage with descendants of the Nanaʻulu or Ulu line of indigenous rulers he established the Pili line of rulers in Waipiʻo, from whom Kamehameha ultimately descended.  (McGregor)

Kūkaniloko, the sacred place of birth on the central plateau may have been constructed by the late-AD-1300s.  A divine center for Nanaʻulu chiefs, to be born at Kūkaniloko signified legitimacy.  It is said that chiefs from other islands often sought greater prestige by marrying those with these strong ancestral lineages.

During the wars of interisland unification in the eighteenth century, the indigenous ruling Nanaʻulu chiefs of Oʻahu were practically exterminated, first by invaders from Maui, then by the warriors of Kamehameha I of Hawaiʻi Island.    (Klieger)

The image shows a general genealogical Chart from Papa and Wākea, to Kiʻi, to Nanaʻulu and Ulu, with several names noted.  (Emory)

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by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Nine Traditions That Emphasized Chiefly Rank

In 1920, Martha Beckwith became the first person to hold a chair in Folklore at any college or university in the country. The Folklore Foundation, established at Vassar, was an unprecedented institution and became a center of research in the almost entirely new field of folk culture.  (Vassar)

“Position in old Hawaiʻi, both social and political, depended in the first instance upon rank, and rank upon blood descent-hence the importance of genealogy as proof of high ancestry.”

“Grades of rank were distinguished and divine honors paid to those chiefs alone who could show such an accumulation of inherited sacredness as to class with the gods among men. Since a child inherited from both parents, he might claim higher rank than either one.”  (Beckwith)

There were nine traditions that emphasized chiefly rank:

  1. a family genealogy tracing back to the gods through one of the two sons of Ki‘i, Ulu and Nanaʻulu, and by as many branches (lala) as family relationship could be stretched to cover
  2. a name chant, composed at birth or given in afterlife, glorifying the family history not only of persons concerned but also of places made sacred by particular events or association
  3. signs in the heavens by which ʻaumakua of the day recognized their offspring on earth
  4. a special place set aside as sacred to the birth of high-ranking chiefs (i.e. Kūkaniloko)
  5. the sacred cord (aha) stretched at the entrance of a chief’s dwelling, under which all of lower rank must pass but which fell “of itself” before the approach of anyone of equal or higher position
  6. wealth, especially in lands, labor and specialized objects such as foods, ornaments, colors belonging to ranking chiefs alone
  7. the power of the kapu, which gave the ranking chief immense personal privilege, although the ruling chief might have actually more power over lands and wealth (before certain captive chiefesses of Maui of incredible sanctity, according to Kamakau, Kamehameha himself was of lower rank)
  8. the right to officiate in the heiau as both chief and priest 
  9. at death, the final deification of the bones and their laying away in a sacred and secret place difficult of access (one of the most important such place in ancient times being the ʻĪao valley on the island of Maui)

Rank depended primarily upon blood; but of great importance was the conduct of life by which one could, by carelessness in preserving the kapu and in making proper marriages, lose caste and prerogatives under the severe discipline of the Aha-ali‘i (Council of Chiefs,) or could, through a royal marriage, raise the rank of one’s descendants upon the family line.

The image, ‘Aha Ula’ by Brook Parker, represents the chiefly rank.  Information here is primarily from Beckwith, Mookini and Yardley.

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Mount Kaʻala

The Waiʻanae Mountains, formed by volcanic eruptions nearly four-million years ago, have seen centuries of wind and rain, cutting huge valleys and sharp ridges into the extinct volcano.  Mount Kaʻala, the highest peak on the island of Oʻahu, rises to 4,025 feet.

Today, only a small remnant of the mountain’s original flat summit remains, surrounded by cliffs and narrow ridges. It’s often hidden by clouds.

Mount Kaʻala is mentioned in Hawaiian mythology as a mountain that the goddess Hiʻiaka, the sister of Pele, climbed on her way back to the island of Hawai‘i from Kaua‘i. From there she saw the destruction that Pele, enraged over her long absence, created by causing a flow of lava over her lands in Puna.

According to Hawaiian traditions, the Kaʻala bog, on the west side of the summit, was once a freshwater pond used as a fishpond. Kamaoha was the goddess of this pond in which shore fish and a kind of mullet were caught. The informant who reported the pond to McAllister called it a luakini fishpond (1933), which might indicate its use only by chiefs.  (TetraTech)

When viewed from Kūkaniloko, the sun sets directly behind the summit of Mount Kaʻala at the vernal and autumnal equinoxes. Thus, it has been suggested that these places may have been of importance in Hawaiian astronomy and calendric determinations. (TetraTech)

Kaʻala is the subject of several ʻŌlelo Noʻeau.

“Ka ua Kolowao o Kaʻala.
The Mountain-creeper rain of Kaʻala.
This rain is accompanied by a mist that seems to creep among the trees.”

Ancient Kahuna spoke of Mount Kaʻala as being clothed in the golden cloak of Kāne, the first deity of the Hawaiian pantheon. Kaʻala was the guardian of the road to the west, the path of the sun, the resting place on that great road to death where spirits of the dead return to their homeland.  (CZM)

Several ʻŌlelo No’eau speak of Kaiona, goddess of Kaʻala and the Waiʻanae Mountains.

Ka wahine hele la o Kaiona, alualu wai li‘ulā o ke kaha pua ‘ōhai.
The woman, Kaiona, who travels in the sunshine pursuing the mirage of the place where the ‘ōhai blossoms grow.

Ke kaha ‘ōhai o Kaiona.
Kaiona’s place where the ‘ōhai grows.

He lokomaika‘i ka manu o Kaiona.
Kind is the bird of Kaiona.
Said of one who helps a lost person find his way home.

Kaiona was known for her kindness and helpfulness. She rescued travelers who lost their way while crossing her mountain home by sending an ʻiwa bird to guide lost individuals to safety. This goddess was so beloved by Hawaiians that her name was given to Bernice Pauahi Bishop in mele that honor Pauahi.

In 1970, Hawaiʻi became one of the first states in the country to recognize the importance of its unique natural resources by establishing the State Natural Area Reserves System (NARS.)

Then, in 1981, the 1,100-acre Mount Kaʻala Natural Area Reserve was established to protect the diversity of native ecosystems, including native shrublands, forests and a bog.  (DLNR)

Most of the 1,100-acres of the state natural area reserve at Mount Kaʻala are made up of rugged terrain, including steep, inaccessible gulches. It ranges from wet forest at the top, to lowland dry forest.

The Mount Kaʻala NAR protects Hawaiian plants and animals and ecosystems, most found only in Hawai`i, and some very rare. The only vehicle access is a controlled government road, while arduous ridge trails lead to the summit of Mt. Kaʻala.

There, a boardwalk trail takes you on a walk through a native cloud forest. The boardwalk allows visitors to explore the misty flats of Kaʻala safely, and with a minimum of impact to the fragile plants and animals.

Protection of Mt. Kaʻala Natural Area Reserve’s watershed forests by restoring native forest ecosystems is critical for maintaining the water supply of West and Central Oahu. Volunteers reintroduced the critically endangered kamakahala – with fewer than 100 individuals remaining in the wild – to its native habitat in the ridges of Mt. Kaʻala.

(The FAA maintains an active tracking station at the summit, which is closed to the general public and secured by the US Army from Schofield Barracks. The tracking station can be clearly seen from afar as a white domed shaped structure.)

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by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Oʻahunui

Robert Louis Stevenson suggested, “Cannibalism is traced from end to end of the Pacific, from the Marquesas to New Guinea, from New Zealand to Hawaii” (although he does state “Hawaiʻi is the most doubtful” and notes only a possible single circumstance.)

Beckwith, in forceful language, noted, “there is no proof that cannibalism was ever practised in the Hawaiian group.”  In addition, the story of Oʻahunui, by Mrs. EM Nakuina, which appeared in Thrum’s Hawaiian Folk Tales, attributes the introduction of cannibalism to a foreign source (“chiefs from the South Seas”) and recounts the rejection of the practice.

A few miles mauka of Kūkaniloko, to the east of Helemano, is Oʻahunui (“Great O’ahu,”) another historical place. This was the residence of the kings of the island.

When the Lo ʻAi-kanaka (“The people-eaters,”) as the last of the cannibal chiefs were called, were forced to take up residence in upper Helemano, a district just outside of the boundaries of those reserved for the royal and priestly residence, a young man called Oʻahunui was king.

They had been driven from Mokuleʻia and Waialua by the inhabitants of those districts; for the people had been exasperated by the frequent requisitions on the kamaʻāina (original inhabitants) by the stranger chiefs to furnish material for their cannibal feasts.

Oʻahunui was captivated by the suave manners of the ingratiating southern chief and his immediate retainers, and he invited them to a feast.  The southern chief returned this civility, and the King dined with the strangers. Here it was strongly suspected that the dish of honor placed before the King was human flesh, served under the guise of pork.

The King found the dish very much to his liking.  This went on for some time, until the unaccountable disappearance of so many people began to be connected with the frequent entertainments by the southern chief.

Oʻahunui’s subjects began to hint that their young King had acquired the taste for human flesh at these feasts, and that it was to gratify his unnatural appetite for the horrid dish that, contrary to all royal precedent, he paid his frequent visits to those who were his inferiors.

The people disapproved more and more openly of the relationship of Oʻahunui with his new friends. His chiefs and high priest became alarmed and begged him to discontinue his visits, or they would not be answerable for the consequences. The King, forced to heed their warnings, promised to keep away from the Lo ʻAi-kanaka, and did so for quite a while.  Then, things changed.

Since the king had been prevented from partaking of human flesh, he had compelled his servants to kill, cook and serve up his own nephews. In satisfying his depraved appetite, he had also gotten rid of two formidable rivals; for it was quite possible that the priests and chiefs might have deposed him and proclaimed one of the two young nephews his successor.

In retaliation, the boys’ father, Lehuanui, secured a stone adze and went to the King’s sleeping-house.  Lehuanui stood over Oʻahunui, adze in hand, and called him three times.  Enraged Lehuanui struck at Oʻahunui’s neck with his stone adze and severed the head from the body with a single blow.

Lehuanui avenged the death of his children by killing Oʻahunui and his wife, Kilikiliʻula, who had it within her power to save her children. It is said that Oʻahunui and Kilikiliʻula, and the attendants that participated in the killing and cooking of the children, were turned into stone and are still to be seen.

Oʻahunui, located a few miles east of Kūkaniloko, was the former residence of the ruling chiefs of Oʻahu. A stone in the shape of the island of Oʻahu is said to rest there. According to Nakuina’s story, the last Aliʻi to live at Oʻahunui was named Oʻahunui.

Oʻahunui and is described as a stone “whose outline is said to resemble that of O`ahu”. The location of the Oʻahunui stone is reportedly in the gulch near the Ewa-Waialua District boundary, presumably Waikakalaua Gulch.

The stone was formerly visited by the Hawaiians, for no one could say that he had been entirely around the island of Oahu, unless he had been around this stone. (Cultural Surveys)

While most reports note the stone’s specific location is unknown, general descriptions note its approximate location.  The stone, generally resembling the shape of Oʻahu, is said to be located in Waikakalaua Gulch, near the border of the ʻEwa/Waialua Moku boundaries and is within the approximate distance of other points noted by archaeologists.

The image shows what one has suggested may be the Oʻahunui Stone or one of the stones near it (Yee.)  (The indicated location is according to the general description noted above – however, I am not sure if this is the Oʻahunui stone.)

(This summary is from the story by Emma M Nakuina, that first appeared in Thrum’s Hawaiian Annual in 1897 (noted in hawaii-edu)) (The photos are not to suggest they are of the Oahunui Stone; a suspicion by others.)

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by Peter T Young 2 Comments

Holoholokū

Hānau ke aliʻi I loko o
Holoholokū, he aliʻi nui
Hānau ke kanaka I loko o
Holoholokū, he aliʻi no
Hānau ke aliʻi mawaho aʻe o H
Holoholokū ʻaʻohe aliʻi
he kanaka ia.

The child of a chief born in
Holoholokū is a high chief;
The child of a commoner born
in Holoholokū is a chief;
The child of a chief born outside
of the borders of Holoholokū
is a commoner.

The traditional name was Ka Lae o Ka Manu, which means the crest of the bird. Holoholokū appears to have been the ancient locality name.  (NPS)

Oral traditions tell of the sacred births of Kauaʻinui and Wailuanuihoʻano and the establishment of this area as a birthing site reserved for royalty. It is still considered as one of Hawaiʻi’s most sacred sites.  (Wailua Heritage Trail)

Holoholokū at Wailua on Kaua’i was one of two places in Hawai‘i specifically designated for the birth of high ranking children; the other site was Kūkaniloko near Wahiawa on Oʻahu.

Here all the kings of Kauaʻi were born, from earliest times to King Kaumualiʻi.  Aliʻi from other islands would also come here to give birth.

Kaumuali‘i was the only son of Kamakahelei and Kāʻeo (his mother Kamakahelei ruled the island when Captain James Cook made ‘contact’ in 1778.)  Kaumualiʻi was born the same year at Holoholokū. Kaumuali‘i became ruling chief of Kaua‘i upon the death of his parents.

It is said to be the oldest heiau on Kauaʻi and was named for a foster parent of Kawelo, son of Kauai’s ruling chief Mano-kalani-po and his wife Ka-wai-kini early in the 17th century.

Two boulders are within the heiau; the pōhaku hānau (birthstone) is actually two rocks.  Expectant mothers sat on the flat rock and rested her back on the other; when in use, the rocks were enclosed in a shelter and the rocks were covered with mats and kapa.

“… when an expectant mother of royal lineage was about to deliver her child, she would travel to the birthstone and squat on the ledge, leaning back against the upright section of the stone. After the birth, the mother and child were moved into a cave adjacent to the stone …“

“The mother remained in the cave with her child and retinue until she was able to travel; a booth or temporary shelter was built over the place. This was the sacred birthplace of the aliʻi or chiefs.”

“If the child really were a great chief, the heavens allegedly would burst forth with thunder and lightning, and there would be a heavy downpour of rain. A rainbow would arch over the area, with one end indicating the spot where the child had been born.”  (NPS)

A tradition describes how the piko (navel cord) of a newborn child was placed in the nearby Pōhaku Piko; if a rat stole the piko it was an omen that the child would grow up to be a thief, and allegedly the child was put to death. (NPS)

Another legend states that the newborn child was carried up a path to a boulder on the ridge, overlooking the river.  As the kahuna walked, he chanted of the arrival of the new chief.  (Joesting)

Within the walls of the heiau was a grass-thatched house of the kahuna.  “Bits of branch coral (indicative of sacredness) are scattered through the walls. Small, water-worn pebbles out on the earthen floor indicate the former presence of a house floor-pavement.”

“The west side of the heiau is bounded by a terrace and at the south end of this terrace, the south-west corner of the heiau, is a great horizontal ledge of stone, called the sacrificial stone.”

“Built out from the north side of this ledge is a little terrace, 9 feet square ….. I am certain the heiau of Ka-lae-o-ka-manu, or Holoholokū served in conjunction with the birth place, and that here the drum which would announce the news would be kept, as the drum of Kūkaniloko was kept in the near-by heiau.”  (Emery, 1933)

In December 1933, restoration of the Holoholokū heiau was completed by a team of volunteers led by Grove Farm director Henry Digby Sloggett, with Kapaʻa resident Charles Lono Kelekoma and Honolulu’s Bishop Museum providing technical expertise.   (TGI)

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