AISP Kamehameha Highway Guideway - Honolulu Rail Transit Project

Cultural Surveys Hawai‘i Job Code: MANANA 1
Background Research
‘Aiea
‘Aiea Ahupua‘a extends from the East Loch of Pearl Harbor to the Pu‘u ‘Ua‘u mountain peak,
generally following ‘Aiea Stream. ‘Aiea is said to have been named for the ‘aiea (Nothocestrum
sp.) tree or shrub (Pukui et al. 1974:7), which was used for thatching sticks and for fire-making
(Pukui and Elbert 1971:9). Pu‘u ‘Ua‘u is named after the ‘ua‘u, or dark-rumped petrel
(Pterodroma phaeopygia sandwichensis), a seabird that travels inland to nest (Pukui et al.
1974:206). The wall of Loko Kakupōhaku, a large fishpond in ‘Aiea along the Pearl Harbor
coast (see Figure 9), marked the boundary between ‘Aiea and Hālawa Ahupua‘a.
Hālawa
Hālawa Ahupua‘a extends from the East Loch of Pearl Harbor to the crest of the Ko‘olau
Range, generally following Hālawa Stream. The word hālawa is translated as “curve” (Pukui et
al. 1974:36). Along the coastal trail connecting Honolulu to Wai‘anae, ‘Īī (1959:95) mentioned
two resting places in Hālawa for travelers, Napehā and Kauwamoa. Napehā, translated as “bend
over breath” (Pukui et al. 1974:163), was a pool and resting place where people went diving. The
pool was said to have been named for the chief, Kūali‘i, who stopped and bent over the pool to
take a drink (‘Ī‘ī 1959:95). Kauwamoa was also a diving place where people liked to gather, said
to be a favorite diving spot of Pe‘ape‘a, son of Kamehamehanui of Maui (‘Ī‘ī 1959:95).
Kūāhua, a small offshore island considered a part of Hālawa Ahupua‘a, is translated as
“standing heap” (Pukui et al. 1974:118). Kūāhua was attached to the coast via the Loko Kunana
fishpond (see Figure 9). A long time resident stated the fishpond was named after Kūanānā, the
mother of Ka‘ahupahau, the shark chiefess of Pu‘uloa, who liked to fish there (Sterling and
Summers 1978:10). Makalapa Crater is a prominent geological feature located inland of Loko
Kunana (see Figure 9). The word makalapa is translated as “ridge features” (Pukui et al.
1974:140). Leilono, located on the hill of Kapukaki (Red Hill) at the boundary between Hālawa
and Moanalua Ahupua‘a, “was a place said to be the opening, on the island of O‘ahu, for
mankind to enter eternal night” (Kuokoa Aug. 11, 1899, cited in Sterling and Summers 1978:9).
2.1.2 Traditions Associated with the ‘Ewa District
Some of the themes associated with ‘Ewa include connections with Kahiki, the traditional
homeland of Hawaiians in central Polynesia. There are several versions of the chief Kaha‘i
leaving from Kalaeloa on a trip to Kahiki. Upon his return to the Hawaiian Islands, he brought
back the first breadfruit (Kamakau 1991:110) and planted it at Pu‘uloa, near Pearl Harbor in
‘Ewa (Pukui et al. 1974:200). Several stories associate places in ‘Ewa to the gods Kāne and
Kanaloa, with the Hawaiian pig god Kamapua‘a and the Hina family, and with the sisters of the
volcano goddess Pele, all of whom have strong connections with Kahiki (Kamakau 1991:111).
‘Ewa literally translates as “crooked” (Pukui et al. 1974:28) or “imperfect” (Pukui and Elbert
1971:39). Others interpret the meaning of ‘Ewa as “strayed,” in association with a story about
the gods Kāne and Kanaloa, who threw a stone to determine the boundary of the district:
When Kane and Kanaloa were surveying the islands they came to Oahu and when
they reached Red Hill saw below them the broad plains of what is now Ewa. To
mark boundaries of the land they would throw a stone and where the stone fell
Archaeological Inventory Survey Plan, HHCTCP Construction Phase II, Waiawa, Mānana, Waimano, Waiau,
Waimalu, Kalauao, ‘Aiea, and Hālawa Ahupua‘a, ‘Ewa District, Island of O‘ahu
TMK[1] 9-7, 9-8, and 9-9 - Various Plats and Parcels
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