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Hawaiian Culture

Hawaiian culture stories from Molokai

Summer School Immerses Students in Language and Culture

Wednesday, June 25th, 2014

Summer School Immerses Students in Language and Culture

If you visited Ali`i Fishpond last week, you would have found a group of students twisting ti leaf lei using their toes as anchors, speaking to each other quietly in `Olelo Hawaii under the branches of a hala tree. Meanwhile, another group of students learned lomi massage techniques, while seated beneath the shade of the hale overlooking the fishpond, giving each other treatments.

This was the third annual Kula Kaiapuni Kauwela summer school, a Hawaiian immersion program for one month in June and July. This year, for the first time, students spent one week at Ali`i Fishpond as part of the program.…

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OHA Trustees to Hold Meetings On Molokai

Thursday, June 12th, 2014

OHA News Release

Native Hawaiians on Molokai will get an opportunity to provide feedback to the Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA) at a community forum as well as a regular meeting scheduled by the Board of Trustees.

The community meeting is designed for OHA officials to listen to concerns and highlight efforts to improve conditions within Hawaiian communities. Both meetings are open to the public. Here are the specifics:

Community Meeting
Wednesday, June 18, 2014
6:30 p.m.
Kulana `Oiwi Halau

OHA Board of Trustees Meeting
Thursday, June 19, 2014
9 a.m.
Kulana `Oiwi Halau

For more information, visit oha.org, or call OHA’s office on Molokai at (808) 560-3611.…

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Feeding Molokai Sustainably

Tuesday, June 3rd, 2014

Feeding Molokai Sustainably

Molokai used to be known as “Molokai `Aina Momona,” or the abundant land, for its plentiful food supply that fed a population many times its current size. Like much of the state, Molokai now imports most of the food found in its stores and restaurants — 98 percent, in fact.

But the food served on Molokai’s dinner tables is a different story. About 40 percent of food consumed comes from subsistence sources such as hunting, fishing, gathering and home grown fruits and vegetables, according to a 2012 study conducted by Sust `aina ble Molokai.

“[The high level of subsistence] means that if disaster hits, Molokai is actually better off than other islands even though food production is less [than other islands],” said Emillia Noordhoek, executive director of Sust `aina ble Molokai.…

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Protecting the Irreplaceable

Wednesday, May 28th, 2014

Hawaii has a rich history, which means the state has a wide range of historic places that should be preserved, conserved and protected. Molokai is leading the way in historic preservation, according to Kiersten Faulkner, executive director of nonprofit Historic Hawaii Foundation (HHF).

“Molokai has set the standard and set the bar high on preserving active cultural sites, such as the fishponds restoration,” said  Faulkner, who came to Molokai May 17 to hold a seminar on historic preservation. “Molokai has been fierce advocates for a sense of place. The rest of the state is way behind Molokai.”

About 15 Molokai residents and HHF representatives met at Kulana `Oiwi to discuss the importance of preserving historic resources on Molokai.…

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2014 May Day Highlights

Wednesday, May 21st, 2014

2014 May Day Highlights

Each year, schools around the island celebrate May Day, known as Lei Day in Hawaii. Students at each school are selected for the royal court to represent every island, and perform songs and dances for family and friends. Here, we represent each celebration that’s taken place over the past three weeks.…

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Dancing with the Winds: Ka Hula Piko 2014

Wednesday, May 7th, 2014

Dancing with the Winds: Ka Hula Piko 2014

Ancient Hawaiians used winds to recognize and heed messages of warning, blessings and things to come. The 23rd annual Ka Hula Piko festival brought the Molokai community, along with visitors from around the world, together to celebrate hula traditions and how Hawaiians today are connected to kupuna of the past through the elements.

“The wind and the elements are so important in our lives and our ancestors made connections to them…that taught us to mind the protocol and be aware of these elements when they are in action,” said Elsie Ryder, ho`opa`a, or chanter, of Halau Hula O Kukunaokala. “Our ancestors and Ke Akua communicate with us through the elements.”…

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Kawela Moku: Reviving the Aha Moku System

Thursday, May 1st, 2014

Community Contributed

Opinion by Kawika Duvauchelle, Kanoelani Davis, and Hawaiiloa Mowat

The Kawela Moku lies roughly between Kalamaula to Kamalo.  It is rich in natural resources, from stunning waterfalls in the mountains to countless loko ia along its shoreline and from the many culturally significant sites that are scared to Hawaiians to one of the largest fringing reefs in the state.  The Kawela Moku is the source of water for many families on Molokai and provides us with fish from the ocean and pig and deer from the mountains.  Our hope is that these gifts will last for many, many generations.…

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Hawaiian Immersion Summer Schools

Wednesday, April 30th, 2014

Community Contributed

By Manuwai Peters

With interest and demand growing for Hawaiian language programs for kids entering middle school, a second Kula Kaiapuni Kauwela site will open this summer at Molokai Middle School. Kula Kaiapuni Kauwela at Molokai Middle is for students who will complete grade six, seven or eight this school year.  The Hawaiian language based curricula is designed to engage and excite students in the many aspects of the Malama Honua Worldwide Voyage of the Hokule`a and Hikianalia wa`a.

Through direct instruction and inquiry, students will compare stories and traditions of the Polynesian (Maori and Tahitian) migration with primary accounts of Hawaiian migrations, genealogies, exploration, and discovery. …

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Learning Journey: Hokule`a Crew Inspires Students

Wednesday, April 30th, 2014

The first time Molokai’s Captain Melvin “Mel” Paoa touched the Hokule`a — a replica of the traditional Hawaiian double-hulled seafaring canoe — in 1977, he said he held on tight and never let go—no matter the odds.

As a diabetic, Paoa was told to discontinue sailing on Hokule`a for health reasons, but he didn’t take no for an answer. In 1985, he set sail on his longest voyage yet for 12,000 miles from Hawaii to Tahiti to French Polynesia and finally the Cook Islands. He told Molokai Middle School (MMS) students, education leaders and community members at an education event last Friday to never give up.…

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Nation-Building Process

Wednesday, April 30th, 2014

Nation-Building Process

Community Contributed

Opinion by Kamana`opono M. Crabbe, Ka Pouhana, Chief Executive Officer for OHA

 

With the May 1 deadline to register with the Official Hawaiian Roll fast approaching, the Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA) is moving aggressively to engage its beneficiaries on Molokai in the nation-building process.

We are invigorated by those in the Hawaiian community who tell us that they are ready to begin a process aimed at creating a nation where all Native Hawaiians have an opportunity to thrive.

This nation-building process will begin and end with Native Hawaiians who, for example, believe their children are entitled to an education that allows them to be competitive in the 21st century; believe their families should have access to safe and affordable housing that strengthens communities; and believe we as a people need to become healthier by stepping it up through exercise, a balanced diet and preventive medicine.…

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