Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 39, Number 2, 1 February 2022 — Let the Storied Plaee Names Live! [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Let the Storied Plaee Names Live!

By Kalani Akana, Phū According to Edward Kanahele (1995), there are stories connected to plaee names; henee, the the term

"storied places." Elbert said that 89% of the plaee names

in Hawai'i are Hawaiian names. The right thing to do is to restore

our storied places. In 'Ewa, you will see Pu'u Kapolei where Kamaunuaniho, the grandmother of Kamapua'a, lived. That hill is not called Fort Barrette. That's a military structure. There are many stories about Pu'u Kapolei although it stands in a desolate area. In "Hi'iakaikapoliopele," Pu'ukapolei and Nāwāhine'ōma'oma'o are known for their lei-making. Perhaps you've driven upon Kualakai Parkway in 'Ewa. Kualakai is a sea creature and the name of a land section where Hilo One (Nimitz Beach) is. There, Hi'iaka sees Hoakalei, a pool, and two lehua trees stood with whieh she sews lei. She sees the reflection of her older sibling, Kapo, in Maui. Kapo, thus, named the pool and the names are being used in new developments. Thanks go to Hawaiian civic clubs for plaee names restoration. The Hawaiian Civie Club of Kapolei encouraged the proper use of of Pu'u Kapolei instead of Fort Barrette, Kalaeloa instead of Barber's Point, and Kualakai instead of Nimitz Beach. The Ko'olaupoko Hawaiian Civic Club erected ahupua'a boundary markers for Hakipu'u, He'eia, Ka'alaea, Kahalu'u, Kailua, Kāne'ohe, Kualoa, Waiāhole, Waihe'e, Waikāne, and Waimānalo. The restoration of Hawaiian plaee names has been beneficial. Therefore, at East O'ahu, Maunalua should be used instead of Hawai'i Kai (Kaiser); at West O'ahu, Keawa'ula instead of Yokohama Bay; northward, Ka'ōhao is proper instead of Lanikai; southward, Awalau o Pu'uloa instead of Pearl Harbor. What about Red Hill? It should be Kapūkakī! Let's use Hawaiian plaee names. In doing so the stories and knowledge of our ancestors live. Let the storied names live! ■ Kalani Akana, Ph.D., is a kumu ofhula, oli and 'ōlelo Hawai'i. He has authored numerous articles on Indigenous ways ofknowing and doing.