Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 38, Number 8, 1 ʻAukake 2021 — Kaulana Nā Wai 'Ehā o Maui [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Kaulana Nā Wai 'Ehā o Maui

V KA NA'AUAO O NA KUPUNA V ^ THE WISDOM OF THE KŪPUNA *

Owai ho'i Nā Wai 'Ehā o Maui? I loko o ke mele a Aliee Nāmakelua i haku ai, 'o "Nā Wai Kaulana," 'o lākou nō 'o Waikapū, 'o Wailuku, 'o Waiehu, a me Waihe'e. He mau kahawai nō lākou 'ehā a ma muli o ka piha pū o ka wai i kahe mai uka a i kai ua lilo ka aina a puni iā lākou i aina mōmona a waiwai no nā kānaka. 'Olu'olu ka nohona o nā maka'ainana ma Nā Wahi 'Ehā ā hiki i ke kū'ai 'ia 'ana i ka 'āina no ka mahi kō e Claus Spreckles ma ka makahiki 1882. He mea kanu "makewai" ke kō no ka mea no ka loa'a o ho'okahi tana o ke kō ua pono e ho'ohana i 4,000 tana o ka wai. 'O ia ke kumu nō ka lawe 'ānunu 'ana i ka wai mai nā kahawai ā hiki i ka pani 'ana o nā wahi mahi kō. Ma hope aku o ka pani 'ana, ua ho'omau nō na'e ka lawe 'ana i ka wai ā hiki i ka ho'oponopono 'ia 'ana i ka pilikia e ka 'aha ho'okolokolo e ho'iho'i i ka wai i nā kahawai. No laila, ma muli o ka ho'oholo 'ana e ke aupuni e ho'iho'i i ka wai i Nā Wai 'Ehā, ua hiki i nā kānaka mahi 'ai ke ho'ōla hou i kā lākou mau lo'i kalo e like me Nohoana Farms ma Waikapū, he 'āina o ke kupa mahi' ai 'o Hōkūao Pelegrino a he kuleana i ili iho iā ia mai kona mau kūpuna, mai ka makahiki 1848. Ma kēlā manawa ho'okuleana 'āina, ua loa'a 1,300 a 'oi mau lo'i kalo ma Waikapū. 'O Waikapū paha kāhi helu 'ekahi o nā wahi mahi'ai ma ka loa'a 'ana o ke kalo ma Maui a ma Hawai'i Nei paha. Eia kekahi mea hoihoi 'ē a'e, 'o Waikapū wale nō ke kahawai o Nā Wai 'Ehā e puka ana ma ka hema o Maui - ma Ma'alaea. Hānai kēia kahawai i ka loko 'o Keālia, he kaianoho no nā mea ola like 'ole e like me ka ae'o, ka

'alae, a me ke koloa. Kokoke iā Waikapū 'o Wailuku. Ua ku ai lilo kēia 'āina e Spreckles a lilo i 'ili kūpono, 'o ia ho'i he 'āina kū 'oko'a mai ke ahupua'a. Ma muli o ka 'oihana mahi kō ua ho'ololi 'ia ka inoa o ke kahawai 'o Wailuku i ka inoa 'o 'Iao. Akā ua paio noke ka Hui o Nā Wai 'Ehā e ho'āla hou i ka inoa 'o Wailuku a ua koho paloka ka Papa O Nā Inoa Hō'ikehonua Hawai'i ma ka makahiki 2015 e ho'iho'i i ka inoa ponoT 'oia ho'i 'o Wailuku. Kā'alo kēia kahawai nui 'o Wailuku iā Pihana me Hale Ki' i, kāhi noho ali'i o Kekaulike. I ka manawa a Kamehameha i ho'ouka kaua ai iā Maui, aia 'o Keōpūolani ke noho nei ma laila me kona makuahine 'o Keku'iapoiwa Liliha me kona kupuna 'o Kalola. I kēia manawa, kahe hou ka wai i ua wahi kapu la a ho'i nā mea ola e like me ka 'o'opu i ka wai. Ma ke kuono 'o Ka'ehu ka palena o Wailuku me Waiehu. Aia ma laila kekahi kaianoho o nā manu oiwi like 'ole e like me ka 'ae'o, ulili, 'akekeke a pēlā aku. 'O ka makani o Waiehu ka makani Hō'eha 'ili a 'o ka Līlīlehua ka ua. Ua malo'o loa kēia kahawai i ka wā o ka mahikō no ka mea ua lawe pau 'ia a'e la ka wai no kēlā mea kanu 'ānunu 'o ke kō. 'O Waihe'e ke kahawai kahe wai loa a kahe nui o Maui. Mai Mauna Kahālāwai kēia kahena wai. I uka o Waihe'e ma nā pali ka wailele kaulana ma nā mele 'o 'Eleile. Ua 'ōlelo 'ia e nā kupa o ka ua Kili'o'opu, "Ka wai ho'iho'i lāT o 'Eleile," no ka mea inā kīloi nā kānaka i 'aukī i ka pūnāwai ma laila, ua iho a lilo, ea a'e, a ho'i mai ia. Ma laila nō, ma ua pūnāwai nei, kāhi a nā 'ohana o Waihe'e i waiho ai i nā piko o ke keiki. Ua 'ikea! ■ Kalani Akana, Ph.D., is the culture specialist at OHA. He is a kumu of hula, oli and olelo Hawai'i. He has authored numerous articles on Indigenous ways of knowing and doing. To read this article in English, go to kawaiola.news.

Na Kalani Akana, Ph.D.