Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 5, Number 4, 1 ʻApelila 1988 — Proper Understanding, Pronunciation Important [ARTICLE]

Proper Understanding, Pronunciation Important

Na Wahi Pana are Culturai Artifacts, Treasures

By Maleolm Naea Chun Cultural Services Officer

A very real and living reminder of the presence of the native culture of these islands in our modern day lives is seen in Hawaiian plaee names. These names, our legacy of an ancient past, live on in eommunities, valleys, streams, beaches, schools, buildings, roads, everywhere in our unique state. lf our commitment is to ensure and promote that eulture, then we must be vigilant to the proper understanding and pronunciation of Hawaiian plaee names, na wahi pana, as cultural artifacts and treasures.

No matter what society or culture, plaee names are an important artifact to that particular people and to those attempting to understand them. In many societies, plaee names are chosen and given to honor members of that group; to commemorate a significant event in the life of that community; to describe the environment or geography of that area, perhaps as a descriptive reference or landmark, and so on.

Plaee names, like the people who created them, do change as the community changes through evolutionary or radical development. For instance, on the Baltic Coast in Imperial Russia lay a eommunity whieh was being transformed into a Western European city under the direction of Peter the Great. This city became known as St. Petersburg whieh was later renamed Leningrad following the Communist revolution in this century. There are other historic misnomers, such as the controversial name of the native people of the Americas— Indians.

Plaee names in Hawaii were derived from that of ancestors, in honor of a famous person or chief, or "according to the nature of that thing." It is recorded that O'ahu was a new name given in memory of an ancestor of the people of O'ahu. The older names of the island were Lalolomehani, Lalowaia and Laloohoaniani. O'ahu was the child of Papa and Lua, and because he had been a good chief, the people therefore called the land after the chief, O'ahu-a-Lua.

S.M. Kamakau wrote that Wailuanui-a-Ho ano was born in 'Ewa, O'ahu, and his descendants went to Kaua'i and to Maui, and wherever they settled they called the land after the name of their ancestry. Wailua was a son of La'akona, ancestor of the 'Ewa family by Ka-ho'ano-o-kalani. His name, Wailuanui-a-Ho'ano, eame from adding the name of his mother." However, Kamakau notes, that "In the very ancient days the lands were not divided. An island was left entirely without being cut up into subdivisions such as moku'aina, kalana, 'okana, ahupua'a, or 'ili'ana. But when an island became crowded with people it was divided and the land portioned out equitably and a name given to eaeh part in

order to identify it . . . In the old days the lands were divided up according to what was proper for the chiefs, the lesser chiefs, the prominent people, and the people in general to have. Eaeh family clearly understood what was "their" land — 'aina pa'a — and "their" birthplace — "one hanau" — and the chiefs knew what lands they had given to this and that person, and the obligations that went with eaeh portion of the land. In the old days eaeh division of land, large or small, had its own individual name, and it was a matter of "schoolwork" (a'o kula) for the chiefs to leam and memorize the names of the ahupua'a and the 'ili'aina on eaeh island. Because of this memorizing, the ancient names of the lands have eome down to this day. This is not so, however, in the case of localities named for some famous event."

Although the idea or theory is not a new one and has been somewhat modified in the course of time, the radical transformation of ancient Hawaiian society was put forward by Judge Abraham Fornander in a secondary migration of Tahitians. A more recent revision of this radical transformation (idea), is being proposed under the theory of a

population explosion whieh influenced changes in agriculture and land tenure, causing both to be intensified. Perhaps the most eommon land unit developed from this system and mentioned by Kamakau is the ahupua'a, whieh in itself is an interesting plaee name.

In the rites of celebrating the makahiki or annual tributary period, there were rituals conducted at an altar of stone (ahu) at the boundary of every ahupua'a. A carved block of kukui wood made to resemble the head of a pig (pua'a) was placed on the altar, together with some pa'i 'ai (food). When this was done the paths were cleared of people, and a priest, smeared with alae (red clay) mixed with water, accompanied by an attendant who "impersonated a god," and whose hair was bundled in a topknot, appeared. Approaching the altar, the priest invoked a prayer and smeared the carving with some alae. Then they ate food and declared the land purified, and a kapu removed.

A recent archaeological excavation at Kualoa Regional Park discovered the complete skeleton of a pig buried at what is believed to be the boundary line mark between the ahupua'a of Hakipu'u and Kualoa. It is from that site, being the furthest makai, that one ean look directly mauka and align it with the peak of Kanehoalani. A similar site ean be found on the peninsula of Kalaupapa, in whieh a low stone wall descending from the mauka cliffs to makai, ends with a large stone pile or ahu and according to longtime residents, does indeed divide two ahupua'a.

The ahupua'a of Moanalua poses an interesting example of the importance of plaee names, the possible difficulties posed by being a cultural artifact and the cultural material it does reflect. Literally, Moanalua means "two encampments." This name is derived from two taro patches near the road whieh travelers from Ewa to Honolulu used. However, the term Moana could also mean "oeean," therefore changing the literal meaning to, perhaps, "two oceans." Today, this type of linguistic dilemma does pose a problem and points to the need for careful and serious consideration of Hawaiian plaee names, especially since they are a historical and cultural component.

There are many Hawaiian plaee names that elude explanation or origin; their pronunciation in doubt and translation impossible, and others, when haphazardly translated further the confusion of meaning and proper pronunciation. This example is given in the revised edition of Plaee Names of Hawaii: Tourists are told that O'ahu means "gathering plaee," and this seems a sensible name for the most populous of the islands. In ancient times, however, O'ahu was not populous and was distinctly subordinate to Hawai'i and Kaua'i . . . The meaning "gathering plaee" may have been sug-

gested first by Thrum, as late as 1922. Thrum, who paid no attention to glottal stops, may have assumed that the initial O was the subject marker ('o), and that 'ahu meant "to gather, collect." 'Ahu (with a glottal stop) means "garment," and ahu (without a glottal stop) means "heap, pile, eolleetion," (of objects, rferely of people). If "gathering of objects" were the correct pronunciation of the word, the name would be 'Oahu (pronounced 'owahu) . . ."

Present day pronunciation of Hawaiian plaee names ean lead to unintentional loss of meaning, loss of cultural context, and result in an unintelligible word. A case in point is the present day pineapple fields of Hali'imaile on the island of Maui. Loeal residents, Hawaiian and non-Hawaiian, pronounee the name as Hailemaile, whieh has no meaning. However Hali'imaile literally means "maile vines strewn" and possibly refers to the onee lush and dense native forest that existed there in ancient times. Other slight pronunciation

shifts ean be heard in such places as Waipahu, whieh may have been Waipahu, literally "bursting water" whieh refers to a spring, KapukanawaioKahuku. This was a noted site in whieh it was said that a tapa mallet lost in Kahuku (re)appeared. As the community changes, so ean the plaee names, and at times without regard for continuity of the cultural elements. A case in point is Lani-kai whieh was developed around 1924 in an area formerly known as Ka'ohao. The change was meant to mean 'heavenly sea' but without regard to Hawaiian word order, actually may mean 'sea heaven' or 'marine heaven.' Ka'ohao literally means 'the tying' and refers to a legend in whieh two women were tied togetner in the area with a loincloth after being beaten in a konane game.

1 he continuance of the proper Hawanan plaee name takes on renewed importance when one considers its role as a cultural artifact. The culture, Elbert, Pukui and Mo'okini write, is reflected in various ways, by "the large number of names of plants and animals, as well as of geographical entities, [whieh] reflect the animism of the religion — the association of the supernatural with nature." They suggest that "kua", "back" is eommon, perhaps because the backs of the very high chiefs were taboo; and "iwi", "bone", because the bones of chiefs had mana and were hidden after death. The divinity of chiefs is shown by the equating of "lani," "sky" with "royal chief." "'Ula," "red," by far the most eommon of colors, was the traditional Polynesian sacred color.

Therefore, na wahi pana, Hawaiian plaee names, are not merely eommon and daily intrusions into our modern day lives, but rather cultural artifacts and treasures, part of the enduring cultural hentage of Hawaii.