Āina & Places
The word that describes a reciprocal relationship between kānaka and ʻāina — where caring for the land is our responsibility.
Mālama ʻāina
The seasonal return of this giant ocean animal marks winter in Hawaiʻi.
Koholā / Whales
Lā Kūʻokoʻa celebrates
Hawaiian Independence
Lā Kūʻokoʻa is Hawaiian Independence Day — celebrating Nov. 28, 1843, when the Hawaiian Kingdom became recognized as a sovereign nation.
“Ea” means “life” AND “________.”
sovereignty
“Ea” reminds us that when the land thrives, the people thrive — it represents the political life and independence of Hawaiʻi.
What is the Hawaiian word for dance with storytelling?
Hula
Hula is a sacred form of storytelling, preserving genealogy, history, and political memory through movement, chant, and rhythm. Hula preserves history, genealogy, and national identity — not just entertainment.
Traditional farming system for fish & crops using ponds.
Loko iʻa system
The mākāhā (sluice gates) allowed small fish in to feed and grow inside the pond, but kept the larger fish from escaping
Loko iʻa represent the Hawaiian worldview of mauka to makai, showing that the health of the ocean depends on the care of the land. Clean water = more limu = more fish = independent Hawaiian food system
The Hawaiian word for reef.
pūkoʻa or kuaʻau
What national symbol of Hawaiʻi was created by Kamehameha I and is still used today?
Ka Hae Hawaiʻi — the Hawaiian Kingdom Flag
It represents Hawaiʻi as a sovereign nation. It blends British influence with Native Hawaiian identity and has flown since the time of Kamehameha the Great — long before Hawaiʻi became a U.S. state.
What was unique about the Hawaiian Kingdom by the late 1800s regarding literacy?
Hawaiʻi had one of the highest literacy rates in the world.
Hawaiians were highly educated and ran a modern independent nation — not a territory needing to be “civilized,” as U.S. propaganda claimed. Hawaiian literacy surged due to Kingdom-wide education led by Aliʻi like Kauikeaouli (Kamehameha III).
Most people in Hawaiʻi could read and write in ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi — including farmers, fishermen, kūpuna, keiki — everyone. Hawaiʻi published hundreds of Hawaiian-language newspapers, making it one of the largest Native-language archives in the world today.
Ceremony marking the Makahiki season honors which akua?
Lono
Lono represents peace, rain, fertility, and agriculture — the cycle of abundance. Makahiki was a time where warfare stopped, and the people would celebrate, rest, and renew their relationship with ʻāina (land) and each other.
Mauna Kea is sacred to which akua?
Wākea / Sky father
Mauna Kea is considered the piko (spiritual center) that connects Wākea to Papa, Earth Mother.
It symbolizes the birthplace of Hawaiʻi’s people (Kānaka) and the realm of the gods, which is why it is seen as wahi kapu (sacred land) and protected.
Hawaiian navigators used this animal, called “birds of the sea,” to find land.
Iwa (frigate birds)
ʻIwa birds can’t stay out on the ocean for long — they must return to land — so wayfinders watched their flight paths to navigate toward islands.
Which King helped gain international recognition of Hawaiʻi?
Kauikeaouli - Kamehameha III
He formally secured treaties with Britain and France, making Hawaiʻi the first non-European nation in the world recognized as an independent sovereign state.
About how many international treaties did the Hawaiian Kingdom sign with other nations?
Over 90 treaties with 20+ independent countries.
Including Japan, Germany, Britain, France, Italy, Russia, and more — showing Hawaiʻi was an internationally engaged country.
Traditional feather standard representing aliʻi authority.
Kāhili
Kāhili are symbols of chiefly status, genealogy, and governance. They were made with birds native to Hawaiʻi, honoring the sacred connection between aliʻi and the natural world.
A sacred heiau used for healing.
Heiau hoʻōla
Hoʻōla means to heal or give life, and these heiau were cared for by kahuna lāʻau lapaʻau (healing experts) who used medicinal plants, pule (prayer), and ritual to restore balance and health.
Name one animal considered a kinolau (body form) of Kanaloa.
Sea forms: octopus, squid, dolphin, whale,
Land forms: banana, ʻuhaloa, ʻawa, ko, ohe, wauke
The Hawaiian Kingdom was illegally overthrown in what year?
1893
U.S. Marines invaded without consent, supporting businessmen who removed Queen Liliʻuokalani. The U.S. government later admitted it was illegal, but Hawaiʻi was never lawfully annexed.
The line “Ua mau ke ea o ka ʻāina i ka pono” was first spoken by who?
Kamehameha III (Kauikeaouli)
He spoke these words on July 31, 1843, at Ka La Hoʻihoʻi Ea — when British forces returned sovereignty to Hawaiʻi after a temporary occupation. Britain briefly occupied Hawaii in 1843 during an event known as the Paulet Affair. This five-month occupation occurred after a land dispute involving a British subject.
What sacred practice repairs relationships in community + ʻohana?
Hoʻoponopono
A traditional system of restorative justice using truth-telling, prayer, and forgiveness to restore pono (balance). It recognizes that hurt harms the whole ʻohana, and healing must include everyone involved — a practice of spiritual and social sovereignty.
This ahupuaʻa was once the seat of the Hawaiian Kingdom and home of the aliʻi before Honolulu.
Lāhainā
Lāhainā was the capital of the Hawaiian Kingdom from 1820 to 1845.
It was a center of government, diplomacy, and aliʻi leadership under Kamehameha III and was historically called “Lele”.
Lāhainā remains a wahi pana — a sacred, storied place of Hawaiian independence and Ea.
Hawaiian navigators track this star cluster to guide their way; its rising also marks the season of peace and harvest.
Makaliʻi / Pleiades
Makaliʻi rises in winter. Its appearance tells Hawaiians it is time to pause war, give thanks, and celebrate abundance during Makahiki.
Which document shows 21,000 Kānaka saying NO to annexation?
The Kūʻē Petitions
In 1897, Hawaiian citizens — about 95% of the Native Hawaiian population — signed petitions opposing U.S. annexation. It is one of the strongest proofs of Hawaiian national identity and resistance.
“Kaulana Nā Pua” was written as a song of ________.
Resistance
Written in 1893. by Royal Hawaiian Band and Ellen Kekoaohiwaikalani Wright Prendergast after the overthrow, it declares loyalty to Queen Liliʻuokalani and refusal to accept annexation — an anthem of aloha ʻāina (patriotism).
What is the Hawaiian word for cultural practitioners and protectors of traditional knowledge?
Kahu / Kupuna / Kiaʻi
➡️ Kahu — caretakers of sacred practices, places, and knowledge
➡️ Kupuna — elders who carry ancestral wisdom
➡️ Kiaʻi — protectors, especially of sacred sites like Mauna Kea
Together, they ensure the survival of culture, language, and sovereignty — the life of the Lāhui.