Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 12, Number 12, 1 Kekemapa 1995 — Proclamation [ARTICLE]

Proclamation

WHEREAS, Hawaiian is the only indigenous language of this archipelago - one that is not spoken anywhere else; and WHEREAS, Hawaiian is the language of the ancient traditional culture, the songs, and the names of the places, fish, birds and plants of these islands, as well as the language of the motto, anthem and the name of this state ; and WHEREAS, the younger generation in Hawai'i continue to s how a vigorous renewed interest in Hawaiian, and it remains the daily speech of all the people of Ni'ihau and of many of our precious elders; and WHEREAS, the mother tongue of these islands is being used as the language of instruction to over 110 children in eight Pūnana Leo preschools and in 12 Hawaiian language immersion sites - and is also supported through the efforts of many agencies of this land; and WHEREAS, this is the eighteenth anniversary of the status of Hawaiian as an official language of our state as recognized by the Hawai'i State Constitution; and WHEREAS, the centennial observance of the closure of Hawaiian language schools will be observed in 1996 - in remembrance of the period from 1896 to 1986 when both children and teachers were prohibited from speaking Hawaiian in the public schools; Now, Therefore, I, Benjamin ]. Cayetano, Governor of the State of Hawai'i, do hereby proclaim the year 1996 to be Year of the Hawaiian Language.