Hui Malama O Kane I Olo Uma
With plans for a 10-acre Hawaiian cultural preserve, a group of local Hawaiian people calling themselves "Hui Malama O Kane I Olo Uma" has come out swinging against the current rampant development of Po'ipu lands.
If this group has their wish, the project would be the first of its kind in South Kaua'i, and would help perpetuate the Hawaiian culture. The 10-acre site, if created, would run mauka from Brennecke's Beach Broiler restaurant to Po'ipu Road.
But the drive to develop the preserve opens the way for a confrontation between the Kanaka and property owners who own land on which the preserve is planned.
Billy Kaohelauli'i said protection of the entire 10 acres is important, as the land has special meaning to him. His home is located near the edge of the proposed preserve, and every chance he gets to visit historic sites there, he says he makes a pilgrimage to his past, and that of his ancestors.
On the edge of his property is located what he and others say is the only intact makahiki (Hawaiian sporting games similar to Olympics) sporting arena in Hawai'i, encompassing about 1 1/2 acres and protected by a lava-rock border.
Rupert Rowe said the arena was used by the strongest of Hawaiian warriors, who came from faraway villages to do battle. Chiefs were seated in a special section to watch the action, while common folks sat in another area.
The rock wall boasted an elevated walkway, apparently to allow spectators to move around the arena and to get the best vantage points for athletic activities such as grappling, forearm wrestling, and activities stressing physical strength.
Before the combatants did battle, they most likely paid respect to Hawaiian gods, as evidenced by rock idols that were stabilized on elevated piles of lava rock, Rowe said. The rock idols distinguished themselves from other rocks because they were shaped like huge thumbs.
In and around the arena can be found remnants of a water well, a pig pen, five house sites, all apparently for use by the ali'i (ruling chiefs).
The Kanaka apparently chose the area because it offered what they needed for survival. "People would come down here for recreation, and for shopping for food," Kaohelauli'i said. "There were terraced taro, sweet-potato patches, the fish pond, pigs, and the ocean. And they raised animals."
Rowe said a Hawaiian man from Koloa by the name of Henry E.P. Kekahuna drew the map of the arena, with full descriptions of what was in it, for the Kaua'i Historical Society in 1959.
Kaohelauli'i said the rampant development in Po'ipu, some occurring on land where ancient Hawaiians lived, saddens him deeply, and that the proposed refuge, if it can come about, will preserve a part of important history for future generations of Hawaiians.
If this group has their wish, the project would be the first of its kind in South Kaua'i, and would help perpetuate the Hawaiian culture. The 10-acre site, if created, would run mauka from Brennecke's Beach Broiler restaurant to Po'ipu Road.
But the drive to develop the preserve opens the way for a confrontation between the Kanaka and property owners who own land on which the preserve is planned.
Billy Kaohelauli'i said protection of the entire 10 acres is important, as the land has special meaning to him. His home is located near the edge of the proposed preserve, and every chance he gets to visit historic sites there, he says he makes a pilgrimage to his past, and that of his ancestors.
On the edge of his property is located what he and others say is the only intact makahiki (Hawaiian sporting games similar to Olympics) sporting arena in Hawai'i, encompassing about 1 1/2 acres and protected by a lava-rock border.
Rupert Rowe said the arena was used by the strongest of Hawaiian warriors, who came from faraway villages to do battle. Chiefs were seated in a special section to watch the action, while common folks sat in another area.
The rock wall boasted an elevated walkway, apparently to allow spectators to move around the arena and to get the best vantage points for athletic activities such as grappling, forearm wrestling, and activities stressing physical strength.
Before the combatants did battle, they most likely paid respect to Hawaiian gods, as evidenced by rock idols that were stabilized on elevated piles of lava rock, Rowe said. The rock idols distinguished themselves from other rocks because they were shaped like huge thumbs.
In and around the arena can be found remnants of a water well, a pig pen, five house sites, all apparently for use by the ali'i (ruling chiefs).
The Kanaka apparently chose the area because it offered what they needed for survival. "People would come down here for recreation, and for shopping for food," Kaohelauli'i said. "There were terraced taro, sweet-potato patches, the fish pond, pigs, and the ocean. And they raised animals."
Rowe said a Hawaiian man from Koloa by the name of Henry E.P. Kekahuna drew the map of the arena, with full descriptions of what was in it, for the Kaua'i Historical Society in 1959.
Kaohelauli'i said the rampant development in Po'ipu, some occurring on land where ancient Hawaiians lived, saddens him deeply, and that the proposed refuge, if it can come about, will preserve a part of important history for future generations of Hawaiians.
