The original Hula dance originates from Polynesians
that voyaged to the Hawaiian Islands. Polynesians landed on the
Hawaiian Islands and further developed the native Hula dance. Hula falls
into two categories which are Hula Auana and Hula Kahiko. Hula Auana is
Hula that was changed by Western influences and performed with musical
instruments that don't originate from the Hawaiian Islands. Hula Kahiko
is the original Hula dance that was refined before any outside
influence.[1] The Merrie Monarch Festival was created to honor King David Kalākaua,
who was the last reigning king of Hawaii. He was known for bringing
Hula back to the Hawaiian Islands after the United States missionaries
arrived.[2]
The annual competition held in Hilo brings Hula Halau from all over the
world to compete and show their knowledge of Hawaiian culture. The
Merrie Monarch festival is nationally televised and teaches people all
around the world about Hawaiian culture.
Hawaiian Outrigger Canoe Paddling
Hawaiian Outrigger Canoe Paddling was not only the way that native
Hawaiians discovered the Hawaiian Islands, it was a part of their
everyday lifestyle.[3]
From paddling for leisure to traveling from island to island, it has
been a tradition of the Native Hawaiian culture. As of the 21st century,
Outrigger canoe paddling has become an international sport and educates
people from all over the world about Hawaiian culture.
Native Hawaiian Cuisine
When Polynesians
first migrated to the Hawaiian Islands, almost no edible plants were
available. When more people migrated to the Hawaiian Islands they
brought many different plants, so they’d have food to eat. Polynesians
also brought pigs, chickens, and dogs and bred them on the islands. The
most important food eaten was Taro, which was used to make poi; this was a big part of their everyday diet. Some common Hawaiian dishes include: Kalua pig, Lau-lau, Poke, Squid Luau, and Haupia.[4]
Traditional Hawaiian Religion
The traditional Hawaiian religion is a polytheistic animistic
religion. Hawaiians believe that there are spirits in many objects such
as the waves and the sky. The Hawaiian religion believes in four gods;
Kū, Kāne,
Lono, and Kanaloa. They also believe in forty male gods (ka hā), four
hundred gods and goddesses (ke kanahā), the spirits (na ‘unihipili), and
the guardians (na ‘aumākua).[5] The Hawaiian religion is protected under the American Indian Religious Freedom Act.[6]
Hoʻoponopono
Hoʻoponopono
(ho-o-pono-pono) is a cultural practice of reconciliation and
forgiveness, usually combined with prayer. Similar forgiveness practices
were performed on islands throughout the South Pacific, including Samoa, Tahiti and New Zealand.
It is used in spiritual, emotional, mental, and physical healing
practices. Traditional Hawaiian philosophy does not consider the
physical and non-physical aspects of the world to be separate,
therefore, to heal one aspect, all must be healed. Conversely, healing
one will help to heal the rest. For example, if a person has an upset
stomach, healing anger toward a sibling may also help to heal the
stomach. Modern versions of hoʻoponopono may also contain elements of Christian belief and ritual. A session of hoʻoponopono is generally guided.
Western contact, colonization and immigration
In the 1830s, interactions between Hawaii and other western cultures such as Mexicans, Portuguese and Spanish began.[7] During the 1850s, Hawaiian culture was progressively influenced by western cultures.[8]
Cultural interaction consisted of incorporating useful items into each
other’s daily lives. Prior to the arrival of western cultures, Hawaiian
music was called Mele,
Mele includes poems, songs, or chants that were passed down through
generations. When the Portuguese, Mexicans, and Spanish landed on the
Hawaiian Islands, they brought musical instruments such as the ukulele
and the guitar and taught Hawaiians how to play these instruments.
Hawaiians were in a difficult place due to the fact that they
were becoming influenced by different cultures. The end of the 19th
century was burdened with internal struggles since Hawaiians wanted to
protect their culture and keep power over their land. When missionaries
from the United States arrived in Hawaii in 1820, they found it difficult to understand Hawaiian culture and had very negative opinions about their culture.[9]
This led to the oppression of Hawaiian culture during the early 20th
century. The cultural oppression of Hawaiians was evident from the
banning of Hula
dancing and other Hawaiian arts such as the language, the use of
paddling, and music. Hawaiian children were sent to missionary schools
where they were taught the English language. Missionaries
institutionalized the English language by teaching it to children and
making it the language of doing business and working in the government.[8]
In 1898 United States Congress passed the “Newlands Resolution” it was signed into law by President McKinley on July 7, 1898.[10] Sixty-one years later in 1959, the Hawaiian Islands were recognized as the 50th state of the United States. The Annexation
caused many repercussions as their land and culture were effectively
dominated by the culture of the United States. Hawaiians had no say in
anything political or economic that had to do with their land. At the
height of the Hawaiian population there were an estimated 683,000 Native
Hawaiians on the island.[11] By the year 1900 the population had dropped to below 100,000.[11] Hawaiians have also been reduced to 20% of resident population.[12] A huge factor of the decline of Native Hawaiians consisted of the spread of diseases by foreigners such as smallpox, cholera, influenza, and gonorrhea.[13]
Hawaiiana
Hawaiiana is a popular term of academia used in reference to history and various aspects of the culture of Hawaii, currently a region and state of the United States. The term is used especially in reflection of the periods of antiquity and the Kingdom of Hawaii era. Hawaiiana has become increasingly popular among students of history and sociology throughout the world. The principal repository of Hawaiiana is the Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum in Honolulu on the island of Oahu.
The institution is also called the Hawaii State Museum of Natural and
Cultural History and often shares artifacts and information with other
institutions globally for research and study.
Erica Lee and Melissa Gan, writing for The Sheaf,
discussed the appropriation of Hawaiian culture by non-Hawaiian
students and the stigma that comes from the criticism of appropriation.
They criticized the oversimplification of the culture.[15]
In 1919 David and Lydia Bray and a group of young girls gathered before a
court of Hawaiians who had power behind their names. They performed a
traditional Hula dance. The judges deemed the presentation as nothing more than a cultural dance.[16] It wasn’t until the 1930s that Americans came into contact with Hawaiians after annexing their land.[16]
Contact between the Hawaiian Islands and the United States began
through the use of live performances. Hawaiian women came to America and
danced a westernized version of Hula which created an “imagined
intimacy[16]”
between Americans and Hawaiians. Americans felt a true connection to
the Hawaiian culture, however, Hawaiians were upset about their land
being annexed by the United States and wanted no part of American
culture. Hawaiians didn’t see this representation of their Native Hula
dance as true Hula.
America has portrayed a false Hawaiian lifestyle by using outside
influences such as Hollywood movies, music, and marketing. Corporate
companies have gone through a lot of trouble to make a profit off of
Hawaiian culture.[12] For example, the traditional Luau
was used to celebrate specific events such as weddings, birthdays, and
graduations. Luaus have changed from a traditional party to paying a
price to feel like a part of the Hawaiian culture. Traditional Luaus
didn’t include alcohol, island buffets, or performances. They also
didn’t happen every day of the week.[12]
Americans westernized the native Hawaiian Luau to create a profit off
of tourists coming to Hawaii for an unfamiliar experience.[12]
Many native Hawaiians now make a living off of tourists coming to the
islands and pretending that the Luaus done every night are native.
Native Hawaiians (Hawaiian: kānaka ʻōiwi, kānaka maoli, and Hawaiʻi maoli) are the aboriginal Polynesian people of the Hawaiian Islands or their descendants. Native Hawaiians trace their ancestry back to the original Polynesian settlers of Hawaii.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau
report for 2000, there are 401,000 people who identified themselves as
being "Native Hawaiian" alone or in combination with one or more other
races or Pacific Islander groups. 141,000 people identified themselves
as being "Native Hawaiian" alone.[3]
The majority of Native Hawaiians reside in the state of Hawaii
(two-thirds), and the rest are scattered among other states, especially
in the American Southwest, and with a high concentration in California.
The history of Native Hawaiians, like the history of Hawaii, is commonly classified into four major periods:
One theory is that the first Polynesians arrived in Hawaii in the 4th century from the Marquesas by travelling in groups of wakas, and were followed by Tahitians
in AD 1300, who then conquered the original inhabitants. Another is
that a single, extended period of settlement populated the islands.[4]
Evidence for a Tahitian conquest of the islands include the legends of Hawaiʻiloa and the navigator-priest Paʻao,
who is said to have made a voyage between Hawaii and the island of
"Kahiki" (Fiji) and introduced many customs. Early historians, such as
Fornander and Beckwith, subscribed to this Tahitian invasion theory, but
later historians, such as Kirch, do not mention it. King Kalakaua claimed that Pa'ao was from Samoa.
Some writers claim that other settlers in Hawaiʻi were forced into remote valleys by newer arrivals. They claim that stories about the Menehune, little people who built heiau and fishponds, prove the existence of ancient peoples who settled the islands before the Hawaiians.[5]
Demographics
At the time of Captain Cook's arrival in 1778, the population is estimated to have been between 250,000 and 800,000.[6][7]
Over the span of the first century after first contact, the native
Hawaiians were nearly wiped out by diseases introduced to the islands.
Native Hawaiians had no resistance to influenza, smallpox, measles, or whooping cough, among others. The 1900 U.S. Census identified 37,656 residents of full or partial native Hawaiian ancestry.[8] The 2000 U.S. Census identified 283,430 residents of Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander ancestry, showing a dramatic growth trend since annexation by the U.S. in 1898.[9]
Hawaiian language
The Hawaiian language (or ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi) was once the primary
language of the native Hawaiian people; today, native Hawaiians
predominantly speak the English language.
A major factor for this change was an 1896 law that required that
English "be the only medium and basis of instruction in all public and
private schools." This law prevented the Hawaiian language from being
taught as a second language. In spite of this, some native Hawaiians (as
well as non-native Hawaiians) have learned ʻŌlelo as a second language.[10] As with others local to Hawaii, native Hawaiians often speak Hawaiian Creole English
(referred to in Hawai'i as Pidgin), a creole which developed during
Hawaiʻi's plantation era in the late nineteenth and early twentieth
centuries with the influence of the various ethnic groups living in
Hawaii during that time.[citation needed]
Nowadays ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi is the official language of the State of Hawaii, alongside English.
The Hawaiian language has been promoted for revival most recently by a
state program of cultural preservation enacted in 1978. Programs
included the opening of Hawaiian language immersion schools, and the
establishment of a Hawaiian language department at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. As a result, Hawaiian language learning has climbed among all races in Hawaiʻi.[citation needed]
In 2006, the University of Hawaii at Hilo established a masters program in the Hawaiian Language.[11] In fall 2006, they established a doctoral (Ph.D)
program in the Hawaiian Language. In addition to being the first
doctoral program for the study of Hawaiian, it is the first doctoral
program established for the study of any native language in the United States of America. Both the masters and doctoral programs are considered by global scholars as pioneering in the revival of native languages.
Hawaiian is still spoken as the primary language by the residents on the private island of Niʻihau.[12]
Hawaiʻi Sign Language
Alongside ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi, some Maoli (Native Hawaiians) spoke Hawaiʻi
Sign Language (or HSL). Little is known about the language by Western
academics and efforts are being made to preserve and revitalize the
language.
Education
Hawaiian children are publicly educated under the same terms as any
other children in the United States. In Hawaii, native Hawaiians are
publicly educated by the Hawaiʻi State Department of Education, an
ethnically diverse school system that is the United States' largest and
most centralized. Hawaiʻi is the only U.S. state without local community
control of public schools.[citation needed]
Under the administration of Governor Benjamin J. Cayetano
from 1994 to 2002, the state's educational system established special
Hawaiian language immersion schools. In these schools, all subject
courses are taught in the Hawaiian language and use native Hawaiian
subject matter in curricula. These schools were created in the spirit of
cultural preservation and are not exclusive to native Hawaiian
children.[10]
Native Hawaiians are eligible for an education from the Kamehameha Schools, established through the last will and testament of Bernice Pauahi Bishop of the Kamehameha Dynasty.
The largest and wealthiest private school in the United States,
Kamehameha Schools was intended to benefit indigents and orphans, with
preference given to native Hawaiians. The Kamehameha Schools provides a
quality education to thousands of children of whole and part native
Hawaiian ancestry at its campuses during the regular school year, and
also has quality summer and off-campus programs that are not restricted
by ancestry. Kamehameha Schools' practice of accepting primarily gifted
students, in lieu of intellectually challenged children, has been a
controversial topic amongst the native Hawaiian community. Many
'rejected' families feel that the gifted students could excel at any
learning institution, public or private. Thus, the Hawaiian community
may be better served by educating children from high-risk, high-crime
districts so that a greater proportion of disadvantaged youths may grow
up to be responsible community contributors.[citation needed]
Native Hawaiians exemplify patterns of Learning by Observing and Pitching In (LOPI), a model that captures seven interrelated descriptions, or facets, of learning found in Indigenous communities in the Americas.[13] Native Hawaiian views on learning flow from three basic tenets that correspond directly to the LOPI model: “I ka nānā no a ʻike: by observing, one learns. I ka hoʻolohe no a hoʻomaopopo: by listening, one commits to memory. I ka hana no a ʻike: by practice one masters the skill.” [14]
Learner Incorporated and Contributing
Similar to the Indigenous communities of the Americas, Native
Hawaiian children enthusiastically contribute alongside the adults, and
the adult's presence is there to offer support. In most Native Hawaiian
communities, household work tasks, such as ironing and cooking, etc.,
play a major role in contributing to the home life and children’s
participation enhances their importance within the family.[15] Native Hawaiian children have shared aspirations to accomplish collaborative tasks, and they individually take initiative to work together.[16] Children absorb very early the community-wide belief that hana (work) is respected and laziness is shameful. The phrase “E hoʻohuli ka lima i lalo”
(The palms of the hands should be turned down) was used to communicate
the idea that idleness (associated with upturned palms) was to be
avoided.[14]
Collaborative and Flexible Ensembles
Native Hawaiian children cooperate with flexible leadership to combine their skills, ideas, and abilities, like that found in Learning by Observing and Pitching In (LOPI)
in the Indigenous Communities of the Americas. Family organization is a
“shared-function” system that includes flexible roles and fluid
responsibility within the group. Basic family values include
interdependence, responsibility for others, sharing of work and
resources, obedience, and respect. Children assume important family
responsibilities early and act as members of a sibling workforce that is
held collectively responsible for completing tasks.[17]
Children also take initiative to help others in the classroom.[16]
It has been observed that when children are working in a group with
their peers and face difficulty, they will scan the room for an adult to
assist or turn to their close fellows to either ask for help. Children
also scan to provide help to others when necessary. In this way,
children shift between the roles of assisted and assistant. Adults were
present and available, but the children were more often found to take
the initiative to learn from, and teach, one another how to perform
tasks such as sweeping, homework, and caring for younger siblings.[16]
Learning to Transform Participation
Among Native Hawaiians, the goal of learning is to transform participation to encompass conscientious accountability as active contributing members of the community,[13] like that found in LOPI.
For example, in some Native Hawaiian communities, parent(s) teach the
older siblings the necessary skills of care taking. Sibling care-taking
skills can relate to Indigenous American ways of learning by the
children becoming considerate of their parents and taking on the
responsibility when needed in case of a tragic incident with the
parents.[18]
Within the classroom and home settings, adults are present but are not
always directly monitoring the children. Children ask for help when
necessary, but adults appear to rarely interject. Children appeared to
adapt to tasks and situations by observations and go off on their own to
collectively work out how and what to do to complete the task.
Assuming and initiating care
has been found across Polynesian cultures, and Native Hawaiian
practices are in keeping with this trend. One study observed,
interviewed, and evaluated families on the Polynesian Island Sikaiana
and found that fostering children from other families within the
community is a common shared endeavor that serves to construct
relationships, support the community, and nurture compassion and
sympathy (aloha).[19]
As children mature within the family, they go through a process of
having their needs attended and learn to provide and care for the
younger children alongside the adults. Adolescent girls who are active
caretakers are referred to as parents, even if there is no biological
connection.[19]
Wide and Keen Attention for Contribution
The Hawaiians’ ways of learning include wide keen attention from
the children while adults are available for guidance, also found in the
model of Learning by Observing and Pitching In.
Children were found to learn from adults by participating in group
activities where they had the chance to observe the performance of more
experienced participants as well as having errors in their own
performance corrected by more seasoned group members.[17] Because the children learn through observation,
and then are encouraged to practice among their peers, we can speculate
the children have keen attention to events around them, which is an
expectation of adults and community members who are there to assist when
needed.[16]
It has been observed that Hawaiian children were successful at
completing tasks which greatly depend on visual and memory process
skills, which coincides with Hawaiian mother’s frequent use of
non-verbal communication.[20]
Coordination Through Shared Reference
In some Native Hawaiian communities, there is a constant use of “talk story”
which plays an essential role in promoting solidarity in the community
by not overpowering or making the members of the community feel
inadequate for not understanding something. Talk story can consist of
recalled events, folktales, and joking. Joking can be used to tease and
guide the children about how to do a chore better or to avoid serious
trouble.[21]
Talk story relates to an Indigenous way of learning by providing
conversations such as narratives and dramatizations with verbal and
nonverbal communication between the elder and children.
Another example of verbal communication in the Native Hawaiian culture is through the use of chanting,
which can allow a child to understand the relationship of their present
experiences to those of their ancestors, both alive and deceased.
Chanting also allows children to understand the connections of their
chants to mother earth. For instance, chanting can voice the need for
rain to produce plants and induce ponds to grow fish for harvest.[22]
A study comparing Midwestern and Hawaiian mother – Kindergartener pairs presented with a novel task,[17]
found Hawaiian mothers to be much lower than their Midwestern
counterparts in the use of verbal-control techniques and much higher in
non-verbal communication, a finding which implies coordination through non-verbal and verbal means.[13][17]
Aspects of togetherness, continuity, purpose, and significance are a
part of learning and coincide with the Native Hawaiian’s spiritual
connection to earth and environment.[22]
Feedback That Appraises Mastery and Support for Learning
There is verbal and nonverbal guidance from parents to children
with chores and other activities. For example, a pat on the shoulder can
communicate to the child that he/she is doing the activity at hand the
correct way.[15] This example relates to the LOPI
model by there being an appraisal from the parent(s) in order to
support their progress in learning and contributing better in the
community. As the child gradually advances towards more complex tasks,
the goal of mastery and feedback on the adequacy of their contributions
become more pronounced.
In the context of producing objects e.g. baskets, mats, or
quilts, there was a belief that a child must produce a perfect
end-product before moving on to learn the skills of producing something
else.
Perfection in these products was judged by more experienced
craftspeople and was attained by repeated attempts interspersed with
feedback. The perfected final products were kept as a special reminder
and never used. Their production was seen as a necessary first step in
“clearing the way” for other products to come; an indication of mastery
for that skill set.[14]
Throughout several research articles, it becomes clear that many of the
Native Hawaiian ways of learning resemble the defining characteristics
of LOPI, which is common in many Indigenous communities of the Americas.[13]
Hawaiian cultural revival
Native Hawaiian culture has seen a revival in recent years as an outgrowth of decisions made at the 1978 Hawaiʻi State Constitutional Convention,
held 200 years after the arrival of Captain Cook. At the convention,
the Hawaiʻi state government committed itself to a progressive study and
preservation of native Hawaiian culture, history, and language.
A comprehensive Hawaiian culture curriculum was introduced into
the State of Hawaiʻi's public elementary schools teaching: ancient
Hawaiian art, lifestyle, geography, hula,
and Hawaiian language vocabulary. Intermediate and high schools were
mandated to impose two sets of Hawaiian history curricula on every
candidate for graduation.
Statutes and charter amendments were passed acknowledging a
policy of preference for Hawaiian place and street names. For example,
with the closure of Barbers Point Naval Air Station in the 1990s, the region formerly occupied by the base was renamed Kalaeloa.
Office of Hawaiian Affairs
Another important outgrowth of the 1978 Hawaiʻi State Constitutional
Convention was the establishment of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, more
popularly known as OHA. Delegates that included future Hawaiʻi
political stars Benjamin J. Cayetano, John D. Waihee III, and Jeremy Harris enacted measures intended to address injustices toward native Hawaiians since the overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi
in 1893. OHA was established as a trust, administered with a mandate to
better the conditions of both native Hawaiians and the Hawaiian
community in general. OHA was given control over certain public lands,
and continues to expand its land-holdings to this day (most recently
with Waimea Valley, previously Waimea Falls Park).[23]
Besides purchases since its inception, the lands initially given
to OHA were originally crown lands of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi used to pay
the expenses of the monarchy (later held by the Provisional Government
following the fall of the monarchy in 1893). Upon the declaration of the
Republic of Hawaiʻi, they were officially designated as public lands.
They were ceded to federal control with the establishment of the Territory of Hawaiʻi in 1898, and finally returned to the State of Hawaiʻi as public lands in 1959.
OHA is a semi-autonomous government body administered by a
nine-member board of trustees, elected by the people of the State of
Hawaiʻi through popular suffrage. Originally, trustees and the people
eligible to vote for trustees were restricted to native Hawaiians. Rice v. Cayetano—suing
the state to allow non-Hawaiians to sit on the board of trustees, and
for non-Hawaiians to be allowed to vote in trustee elections—reached the
United States Supreme Court,
which ruled in favor of Rice on February 23, 2000, forcing OHA to open
its elections to all residents of the State of Hawaiʻi, regardless of
ethnicity.
Federal developments
Native American Programs Act
In
1974, the Native American Programs Act was amended to include native
Hawaiians. This paved the way for native Hawaiians to become eligible
for some, but not all, federal assistance programs originally intended
for Continental Native Americans.
Today, Title 45 CFR Part 1336.62 defines a Native Hawaiian as "an
individual any of whose ancestors were natives of the area which
consists of the Hawaiian Islands prior to 1778."
There is some controversy as to whether or not native Hawaiians should be considered in the same light as Native Americans.[24][25]
United States apology resolution
On November 23, 1993, U.S. PresidentBill Clinton signed United States Public Law 103-150, also known as the Apology Resolution,
which had previously passed Congress. This resolution "apologizes to
Native Hawaiians on behalf of the people of the United States for the
overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaii.".[26]
Native Hawaiian Government Reorganization Act of 2009
In
the early 2000s, the Congressional delegation of the State of Hawaiʻi
introduced the Native Hawaiian Federal Recognition Bill, beginning the
process of recognizing and forming a Native Hawaiian government
entity to negotiate with state and federal governments. The
significance of the bill is that it would establish, for the first time
in the history of the islands, a new political and legal relationship
between a Native Hawaiian entity and the federal government. This Native
Hawaiian entity would be a newly created one without any historical
precedent in the islands, or direct institutional continuity with
previous political entities (unlike many Native American Indian groups,
for example).[citation needed]
This bill came under scrutiny by the Bush administration's
Department of Justice, as well as the United States Senate Judiciary
Committee. The political context surrounding the Akaka Bill is both
controversial and complex. Proponents, who consider the legislation an
acknowledgement and partial correction of past injustices, include
Hawaiʻi's Congressional delegation, as well as the former Republican Governor, Linda Lingle.
Opponents include the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, (who question
the constitutionality of creating race-based governments), libertarian
activists, (who challenge the historical accuracy of any claims of
injustice), and other Native Hawaiian sovereignty activists, (who feel the legislation would thwart their hopes for complete independence from the United States).[citation needed]
A Ward Research poll commissioned in 2003 by the Office of
Hawaiian Affairs reported that "Eighty-six percent of the 303 Hawaiian
residents polled by Ward Research said 'yes.' Only 7 percent said 'no,'
with 6 percent unsure ... Of the 301 non-Hawaiians polled, almost eight
in 10 (78 percent) supported federal recognition, 16 percent opposed it,
with 6 percent unsure."[27] A Zogby International poll commissioned in 2009 by the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii
indicated that a plurality (39%) of Hawaiʻi residents opposed the
Native Hawaiian Reorganization Act of 2009, and that 76% indicated that
they were unwilling to pay higher taxes to cover any loss in tax
revenues that might be incurred by the act.[28]
Ka Huli Ao: Center for Excellence in Native Hawaiian Law
In 2005, with the support of Senator Daniel Inouye, federal funding through the Native Hawaiian Education Act created the Center for Excellence in Native Hawaiian Law at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa's William S. Richardson School of Law.
A few years later, the program became known as Ka Huli Ao: Center for
Excellence in Native Hawaiian Law. The inaugural director of Ka Huli Ao
is Honolulu attorney Melody Kapilialoha MacKenzie.
MacKenzie is also recognized as the chief editor of the Native Hawaiian
Rights Handbook, which is a legal publication that describes Native
Hawaiian law, a subset of laws of the State of Hawaiʻi. MacKenzie worked
as a clerk to the school of lawʻs namesake, William S. Richardson, for
four years, and also served as the Executive Director of the Native
Hawaiian Legal Corporation for four years, then worked as a senior staff
attorney for another six years.
Ka Huli Ao focuses on research, scholarship, and community
outreach. Ka Huli Ao provides a monthly lunch-time discussion forum
referred to as Maoli Thursday, which is free and open to the public. Ka Huli Ao maintains its own blog,
as well as a Twitter account and a Facebook group. Ka Huli Ao also
provides law students with summer fellowships. Law school graduates are
eligible to apply for post-J.D. fellowships that last for one year.
Notable Native Hawaiians
In 1873 the first native Hawaiian's were given permission from King
Lunalilo (prior emigration of native Hawaiians was not allowed) to
permanently emigrate to the United States (Salt Lake City, Utah) whose
names were Kiha Kaawa, and Kahana Pukahi. Kiha was adopted by Mormon
Missionary President George Nebeker immediately upon arrival making Kiha
Kaawa(Nebeker) the first native Hawaiian to become a US citizen in
1873.
Culture and arts
Hawaiian man with his two children, circa 1890.
Several cultural preservation societies and organizations have been
established over the course of the twentieth century. The largest of
those institutions is the Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum,
established in 1889 and designated as the Hawaiʻi State Museum of
Natural and Cultural History. Bishop Museum houses the largest
collection of native Hawaiian artifacts, documents, and other
information available for educational use. Most objects are held for
preservation alone. The museum has links with major colleges and
universities throughout the world to facilitate research.
With the support of the Bishop Museum, the Polynesian Voyaging Society's double-hulled canoe, Hōkūle‘a,
has contributed to rediscovery of native Hawaiian culture, especially
in the revival of non-instrument navigation, by which ancient
Polynesians originally settled Hawaiʻi.[29]
One of the most commonly known arts of Hawaii is hula
dancing. It is an interpretive dance, famous for its grace and romantic
feel, that expresses stories and feelings from almost any phase of
life.
It is the second youngest product of the Hawaiian hotspot and the current eruptive center of the Hawaiian–Emperor seamount chain. Because it lacks topographic prominence and its activities historically coincided with those of Mauna Loa,
Kīlauea was once thought to be a satellite of its much larger neighbor.
Structurally, Kīlauea has a large, fairly recently formed caldera at its summit and two active rift zones, one extending 125 km (78 mi) east and the other 35 km (22 mi) west, as an active fault of unknown depth moving vertically an average of 2 to 20 mm (0.1 to 0.8 in) per year.
Kīlauea has been erupting nearly continuously since 1983 and has
caused considerable property damage, including the destruction of the
town of Kalapana in 1990, and the destruction of Vacationland Hawaii in 2018. The 2018 lower Puna eruption, which began May 3, over several weeks opened two dozen lava vents downrift from the summit in Puna. The eruption was accompanied by a strong earthquake on May 4 of Mw 6.9, and nearly 2,000 residents were evacuated from the rural Leilani Estates subdivision and nearby areas.
On May 17, 2018 at 4:17 AM, the volcano explosively erupted at the summit in Halemaumau Crater, throwing ash 30,000 feet into the air.[4] Summit explosions have caused the long-term closure of the Kīlauea section of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, and vigorous eruptive activity is ongoing in lower Puna,
where lava entered the ocean in three places, destroyed Hawaii's
largest freshwater lake, covered substantial portions of Leilani Estates
and Lanipuna Gardens, completely inundated Vacationland Hawaii
and all but three houses in the Kapoho Beach Lots. Lava also filled
Kapoho Bay and extended new land nearly a mile into the sea.[5][6] The total number of houses taken by lava since May 3, 2018 was officially announced on June 7 as approximately 600.[7][8] On July 9 the official total had increased to 700 houses.[9]
Background
Kīlauea's eruptive history has been a long and active one; its name means "spewing" or "much spreading" in the Hawaiian language, referring to its frequent outpouring of lava. The earliest lavas from the volcano date back to its submarine preshield stage, samples having been recovered by remotely operated underwater vehicles from its submerged slopes; samples of other flows have been recovered as core samples. Lavas younger than 1,000 years cover 90 percent of the volcano's surface. The oldest exposed lavas date back 2,800 years.
The first well-documented eruption of Kīlauea occurred in 1823
(Western contact and written history began in 1778). Since then, the
volcano has erupted repeatedly. Most historical eruptions occurred at
the volcano's summit or its eastern rift zone, and were prolonged and effusive in character. The geological record shows, however, that violent explosive activity predating European contact was extremely common; in 1790 one such eruption killed more than 400 people, making it the deadliest volcanic eruption in what is now the United States.[10]
Should explosive activity start anew, the volcano would become much
more of a danger to humans. Kīlauea's current eruption dates back to
January 3, 1983, and is by far its longest-duration historical period of
activity, as well as one of the longest-duration eruptions in the
world; as of January 2011, the eruption has produced 3.5 km3 (1 cu mi) of lava and resurfaced 123.2 km2 (48 sq mi) of land.
Kīlauea's high state of activity has a major impact on its
mountainside ecology, where plant growth is often interrupted by fresh tephra and drifting volcanic sulfur dioxide, producing acid rains particularly in a barren area south of its southwestern rift zone known as the Kaʻū Desert. Nonetheless, wildlife flourishes where left undisturbed elsewhere on the volcano and is highly endemic thanks to Kīlauea's (and the island of Hawaiʻi's) isolation from the nearest landmass. Historically, the five volcanoes on the island were considered sacred by the Hawaiian people, and in Hawaiian mythology Kīlauea's Halemaʻumaʻu Crater served as the body and home of Pele, goddess of fire, lightning, wind, and volcanoes.[11]William Ellis,
a missionary from England, gave the first modern account of Kīlauea and
spent two weeks traveling along the volcano; since its foundation by Thomas Jaggar in 1912, the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory,
located on the rim of Kīlauea caldera, has served as the principal
investigative and scientific body on the volcano and the island in
general. In 1916, a bill forming the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park was signed into law by President Woodrow Wilson; since then, the park has become a World Heritage Site and a major tourist destination, attracting roughly 2.6 million people annually.
Like all Hawaiian volcanoes, Kīlauea was created as the Pacific tectonic plate moved over the Hawaiian hotspot in the Earth's underlying mantle.[12]
The Hawaii island volcanoes are the most recent evidence of this
process that, over 70 million years, has created the 6,000 km
(3,700 mi)-long Hawaiian–Emperor seamount chain.[13]
The prevailing, though not completely settled, view is that the hotspot
has been largely stationary within the planet's mantle for much, if not
all of the CenozoicEra.[13][14] However, while the Hawaiian mantle plume is well understood and extensively studied, the nature of hotspots themselves remains fairly enigmatic.[15]
Following the pattern of Hawaiian volcano formation, Kīlauea started as a submarine volcano, gradually building itself up through underwater eruptions of alkali basalt lava before emerging from the sea with a series of explosive eruptions[19] about 50,000 to 100,000 years ago. Since then, the volcano's activity has likely been as it is now, a continual stream of effusive and explosive eruptions of roughly the same pattern as its activity in the last 200 or 300 years.[20]
At most 600,000 years old, Kīlauea is still quite young for a Hawaiian volcano;[3] the oldest volcano on the island, the northwestern Kohala, experienced almost 900,000 years of activity before going extinct.[16] The volcano's foreseeable future activity will likely be much like it has been for the past 50,000 to 100,000 years; Hawaiian and explosive activity will make Kīlauea taller, build up its rift zones, and fill and refill its summit caldera.[20]
Kīlauea has been active throughout its history.[20] Since 1918, Kīlauea's only prolonged period of rest was an 18-year pause between 1934 and 1952.[21] The bulk of Kīlauea consists of solidified lava flows, intermittent with scattered volcanic ash and tephra sourced from relatively lower-volume explosive eruptions.[20] Much of the volcano is covered in historical flows, and 90 percent of its surface dates from the last 1,100 years.[22] Kīlauea built itself up from the seafloor over time, and thus much of its bulk remains underwater;[19]
its subaerial surface is in the form of a gently sloping, elongate,
decentralized shield with a surface area of approximately 1,500 km2 (579 sq mi),[23] making up 13.7 percent of the island's total surface area.[3]
Kīlauea lacks a topographical prominence, appearing only as a bulge on the southeastern flank of the nearby Mauna Loa;
because of this, both native Hawaiians and early geologists considered
it an active satellite of its more massive neighbor. However, analysis
of the chemical composition of lavas from the two volcanoes shows that
they have separate magma chambers,
and are thus distinct. Nonetheless, their proximity has led to a
historical trend in which high activity at one volcano roughly coincides
with low activity at the other. When Kīlauea lay dormant between 1934
and 1952, Mauna Loa became active, and when the latter remained quiet
from 1952 to 1974, the reverse was true. This is not always the case;
the 1984 eruption of Mauna Loa started during an eruption at Kīlauea,
but had no discernible effect on the Kīlauea eruption, and the ongoing inflation of Mauna Loa's summit, indicative of a future eruption, began the same day as new lava flows at Kīlauea's Puʻu ʻŌʻō
crater. In 2002, Kilauea experienced a high-volume effusive episode at
the same time that Mauna Loa began inflating. This unexpected
communication is evidence of crustal-level interactions between Mauna
Loa and Kīlauea, even though these two volcanoes are thought to be
fairly independent of each other.[24] Geologists have suggested that "pulses" of magma entering Mauna Loa's deeper magma system may have increased pressure inside Kīlauea and triggered the concurrent eruptions.[25]
Kīlauea has a large summit caldera, measuring 4 by 3.2 km (2.5 by 2.0 mi) with walls up to 120 m (400 ft) high, breached by lava flows on the southwestern side.[21]
It is unknown if the caldera was always there or if it is a relatively
recent feature, and it is possible that it has come and gone throughout
Kīlauea's eruptive history.[20]
What is known is that the summit caldera likely formed over several
centuries, with its construction estimated to have begun about 500 years
ago,[26] and its present form was finalized by a particularly powerful eruption in 1790.[20] A major feature within the caldera is Halemaʻumaʻu Crater, a large pit crater
and one of Kīlauea's most historically active eruption centers. The
crater is approximately 920 m (3,018 ft) in diameter and 85 m (279 ft)
deep, but its form has varied widely through its eruptive history; the
floor of the Halemaʻumaʻu Crater is now mostly covered by flows from its 1974 eruption.[27]
Kīlauea has two rift zones
radiating from its summit, one leading 125 km (78 mi) out to the east,
the other 35 km (22 mi) long and trending towards the southwest.[20] A series of fault scarps connecting the two rift zones form the Koa'e Fault Zone. Tectonic
extension along both rift zones is causing Kīlauea's bulk to slowly
slide seaward off its southern flank at a rate of about 6 to 10 cm (2 to
4 in) per year, centered on a basal décollement fault 7 to 9 km (4 to 6 mi) beneath the volcano's surface.[28] The eastern rift zone in particular is a dominant feature on the
volcano; it is almost entirely covered in lava erupted in the last 400
years, and at its crest near the summit is 2 to 4 km (1 to 2 mi) wide.[23] Non-localized eruptions, typical of rift zone activity,[20] have produced a series of low-lying ridges down the majority of the east rift zone's length.[23] Its upper segment is the most presently active section of the volcano,[22][26] and is additionally the site of a number of large pit craters;[29] its lower extremity reaches down Kīlauea's submerged flank to a depth of more than 5,000 m (16,400 ft).[26] By contrast, the much smaller southwestern rift has been quiet since a
rifting episode in 1974, and to date, has not been involved in the
current eruptive cycle at all.[28]
The southwestern rift zone's extremity is also underwater, although its
submarine length is more limited. The southwestern rift zone also lacks
a well-defined ridge line or a large number of pit craters, evidence
that it is also geologically less active than the eastern rift zone.[26]
A prominent structure on Kīlauea's southern flank is the Hilina fault system, a highly active fault slipping vertically an average of 2 to 20 mm (1⁄16 to 13⁄16 in) per year[clarification needed] along the system. Its physiographic province is 500 m (1,640 ft) deep, but it is unknown whether it is a shallow listric fault or if it penetrates to the very base of the volcano.[12] In connection with the 2018 lower Puna eruption the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory published some facts leading to the conclusion, that a catastrophic collapse would be incredibly remote.[30] A number of cinder cones, satellite shields, lava tubes, and other eruptive structures also dot the volcano, evidence of its recent activity.[29] Kīlauea has some interactions with Mauna Loa,
its larger neighbor and only other recently active volcano on the
island; interspersed lava flows and ash deposits belonging to its
neighbor have been found on its flanks, and some of Mauna Loa's flows
are, in turn, blanketed in Kīlauea tephra. In particular, the saddle between the two volcanoes is currently depressed, and is likely to fill over in the future.[26]
All historical eruptions at Kīlauea have occurred at one of three places: its summit caldera, its eastern rift zone, or its southwestern rift zone.[3]
Half of Kīlauea's historical eruptions have occurred at or near
Kīlauea's summit caldera. Activity there was nearly continuous for much
of the 19th century, capped by a massive explosive eruption
in 1924, before petering out by 1934. Recent activity has mostly
shifted to Kīlauea's eastern rift zone, the site of 24 historical
eruptions, located mostly on its upper section; by contrast, the
volcano's southwestern rift zone has been relatively quiet, and has only
been the site of five events to date.[20]
Eruptive history
Graph
summarizing the eruptions of Kïlauea during the past 200 years. The
Pu‘u ‘Ö‘ö- Kupaianaha eruption has continued into the 21st century.
Information is sketchy for eruptions before 1823, when the first
missionaries arrived on the Island of Hawai‘i. The total duration of
eruptive activity in a given year, shown by the length of the vertical
bar, may be for a single eruption or a combination of several separate
eruptions.
Geologists have dated and documented dozens of major eruptions over
the volcano's long history, bridging the long gap between Kīlauea's
oldest known rock and only extremely recent written records and
historical observation.[31]
Historical lava flows from the volcano are generally recovered by
scientists in one of three ways. The oldest flows, dating back 275,000
to 225,000 years, have been recovered from Kīlauea's submerged southern
slope by ship-towed remotely operated vehicles. These lavas exhibit forms characteristic of early, submergedpreshield-stage eruptive episodes, from when the volcano was still a rising seamount that had not yet breached the ocean surface,[32] and their surface exposure is unusual, as in most other volcanoes such lavas would have since been buried by more recent flows.[12]
The second method of recovering older rock is through the drilling of deep core samples;
however, the cores have proved difficult to date, and several samples
from depths of around 1,700 m (5,600 ft) that suggested dates as old as
450,000 years have since been found erroneous. More reliable paleomagnetic dating,
limited to rocks dating from after Kīlauea's emergence from the sea,
has suggested ages of around 50,000 years. Exposed flows above sea level
have proved far younger. Some of the oldest reliably dated rock, 43,000
years old, comes from charcoal sandwiched beneath an ash layer on a fault scarp known as Hilina Pali; however, sampled dated from higher up the scarp indicate ash
deposition at an average rate of 6 m (20 ft) per thousand years,
indicating the oldest exposed flows, from the base of the feature, could
date back as far as 70,000 years.[32] This date is similar to that of the oldest dated extant lava flow, a southwestern rift zone flow with an uncorrected radiocarbon dating of approximately 4650 BC.[31]
The oldest well-studied eruptive product from Kīlauea is the
Uwēkahuna Ash Member, the product of explosive eruptions between 2,800
and 2,100 years ago. Although it has since been largely buried by
younger flows, it remains exposed in some places, and has been traced
more than 20 km (12 mi) from the volcano's caldera, evidence of very
powerful eruptions. Evidence suggests the existence of an active
eruptive center at this time, termed the Powers Caldera, 2 km (1 mi)
away from the modern one. At least 1,200 years ago, lava from the Powers
Caldera overtopped its rim and solidified the structure; this was
followed by a period of very voluminous tube-fedpāhoehoe
flows from the summit. Following cessation of activity around 400 years
ago, eruptions re-centered on the eastern part of Kīlauea's summit, and
concurrently activity increased at the northern end of the eastern rift
zone.[26]
1790 to 1934
Painting of the 1891 eruption
The earliest reliable written records of historical activity date back to about 1820,[33] and the first well-documented eruption occurred in 1823, when the volcano was first put under observation;[20] although Native Hawaiians
are thought to have first settled on the island around 1,500 years ago,
oral records predating European arrival on the island are few and
difficult to interpret.[26] One pre-contact eruption in particular, a phreatomagmatic event in 1790,[21] was responsible for the death of a party of warriors, part of the army of Keōua Kuahuʻula, the last island chief to resist Kamehameha I's rule; their death is evidenced by a set of footprints preserved within the Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park which are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[33] Kīlauea has been the site of 61 separate eruptions since 1823, easily making it one of the most active volcanoes on Earth.[3][21]
During its observed history, the volume of lava erupted by
Kīlauea has varied widely. In 1823 Kīlauea's summit caldera was far
deeper than it is today, but was in the process of filling up under
nearly continuous summit eruption, with 3 km3 (1 cu mi) of
lava erupted there alone by 1840. The period between 1840 and 1920 saw
approximately half that in eruptive volume, and in the thirty years
between then and about 1950, the volcano was unusually quiet and
exhibited very little activity; Kīlauea's eruptive volume has increased
steadily since then, with present activity comparable to that of the
early 1800s.[20]
The length and origin of these eruptions have also varied. Events
last anywhere between days and years, and occur at a number of
different sites. Half of all eruptions occur at or near Kīlauea's summit
caldera. Activity there was nearly continuous for much of the 19th
century, and after a reprieve between 1894 and 1907, continued onwards
until 1924. There have been five historical eruptions at the volcano's
relatively quiet southwestern rift zone, and 24 along its more active
eastern rift zone, mostly along its upper section.[20]
The volcano's observed history has mostly been one of effusive eruptions;
however, this is a relatively recent occurrence. Prior to the arrival
of the first Europeans on the island, Kīlauea was the site of regular explosive
activity, evidenced then by tribal chants referencing the volcano's
fickle nature, and today by geological records of an explosively active
mode of past activity. Although explosive activity still occurs at the
volcano, it is not as intense as it once was, and the volcano would
become much more dangerous to the general public if it returned to its
old phase of activity once more.[34]
Kīlauea erupted in 1823 and 1832, but the first major eruption
since the 1790 event occurred in 1840, when its eastern rift zone became
the site of a large, effusive Hawaiian eruption over 35 km (22 mi) of its length, unusually long even for a rift eruption.[35] The eruption lasted for 26 days and produced an estimated 205 to 265 million cubic meters of lava;[21] the light created by the event was so intense that one could reportedly read a newspaper in Hilo at night, 30 km (19 mi) away.[35]
The volcano was active again in 1868, 1877, 1884, 1885, 1894, and 1918,[21] before its next major eruption in 1918–1919. Halemaʻumaʻu, then a small upwelling in the caldera floor, was topped by a lava lake
that then drained, before refilling again, forming an enormous lava
lake and nearly reaching the top edge of the caldera before draining
once more. This activity eventually gave way to the construction of
Mauna Iki, building up the large lava shield within the caldera over a
period of eight months. The eruption also featured concurrent rift
activity and a large amount of lava fountaining.[36]
Activity in 1921–1923 followed.[21] The next major eruption occurred in 1924. Halemaʻumaʻu Crater, a fully formed pit crater after the 1919 event and the site of a sizable lava lake, first drained, then quickly began sinking into the ground, deepening to nearly 210 m (689 ft) beneath a thick cloud of volcanic ash.
Explosive activity began on May 10 of that year, blowing rock chunks
weighing as much as 45 kg (99 lb) 60 m (197 ft) out, and smaller
fragments weighing about 9 kg (20 lb) out as far as 270 m (886 ft),
and, after a brief reprieve, intensified through a major blast on May
18, when an enormous explosive event caused the eruption's only
fatality. The eruption continued and formed numerous eruption columns up to and beyond 9 km (6 mi) in height, before slowly petering down and ending by May 28.[34][37] Volcanic activity was soon confined to the summit, and ceased completely after 1934.[21]
1952 to 1982
The Mauna Ulu eruption of 1969 generated a 1,000-foot (300 m)-high lava fountain
After the Halemaʻumaʻu event, Kīlauea remained relatively quiet, and for a time, completely silent, with all activity confined to the summit.[21] The volcano came alive again in 1952, with an enormous lava fountain 245 m (800 ft) high at the Halemaʻumaʻu Crater. Multiple continuous lava fountains between 15 and 30 m (50 and 100 ft) persisted, and the eruption lasted 136 days.[38] Eruptions occurred soon after in 1954, 1955, and 1959, capped by a large event in 1960, when fissure-based phreatic eruption and earthquake activity gave way to a massive ʻaʻā
flow that overran multiple evacuated communities and resorts; the
resulting summit deflation eventually caused the ever-active Halemaʻumaʻu to collapse even further.[39]
Following the event, eruptive events yearly and nearly
continuous, a state of activity that remains today. The period 1967–1968
saw a particularly large, 80-million-cubic-meter, 251-day event from
Halemaʻumaʻu Crater.[21] This event was superseded the very next year by the marathon Mauna Ulu
eruption, a large effusive eruption which lasted from May 24, 1969 to
July 24, 1974 and added 230 acres (93 ha) of new land to the island.
After eruptive activity had died down, there was a magnitude 7.2 earthquake that caused a partial summit collapse, after which activity did not resume at Kīlauea until 1977.[40] At the time, Mauna Ulu was the longest flank eruption of any Hawaiian volcano in recorded history. The eruption created a new vent, covered a large area of land with lava, and added new land to the island. The eruption started as a fissure between two pit craters, ʻĀloʻi and ʻAlae, where the Mauna Ulu shield would eventually form. Both pāhoehoe and ʻaʻā
lava erupted from the volcano. Early on, fountains of lava burst out as
much as 540 meters (1772 ft) high. In early 1973, an earthquake
occurred that caused Kīlauea to briefly stop erupting near the original
Mauna Ulu site and instead erupt near the craters Pauahi and Hiʻiaka.[40]
The most recent major eruption at Kīlauea has been the longest
duration of any observed eruption. The current Kīlauea eruption began on
January 3, 1983, along the eastern rift zone. The vent produced vigorous lava fountains that quickly built up into the Puʻu ʻŌʻōcone, sending lava flows down the volcano's slope. In 1986, activity shifted down the rift to a new vent, named Kūpaʻianahā, where it took on a more effusive character. Kūpaʻianahā built up a low, broad volcanic shield, and lava tubes fed flows extending 11 to 12 km (about 7 mi) to the sea. Between 1986 and 1991, the connection between Chain of Craters Road and Hawaii Route 130 was cut, and the community of Kapa’ahu, the village of Kalapana, and the subdivisions of Kālapana Gardens and Royal Gardens were lost to the lava.[41] A black sand beach at Kaimū was also engulfed.[42]
In 1992, the eruption moved back to Puʻu ʻŌʻō, but continued in the
same manner, covering nearly all of the 1983–86 lava flows and large
areas of coastline.[43]
As of the end of 2016, the east rift zone eruption had produced 4.4 km3 (1 cu mi) of lava, covered 144 km2
(56 sq mi) of land, added 179 ha (442 acres) of land to the island,
destroyed 215 structures, and buried 14.3 km (9 mi) of highway under
lava as thick as 35 m (115 ft).[44]
In addition to the nearly continuous activity at Puʻu ʻOʻo
and other vents on the east rift zone, a separate eruption began at
Kilauea's summit in March 2008. On March 19, 2008, following several
months of increased sulfur dioxide emissions and seismic tremor, a new
vent opened at Halemaʻumaʻu Crater
at Kilauea's summit in an explosive eruption. Following this event, the
new crater formed in the explosion, informally named the "Overlook
Crater," emitted a thick gas plume that obscured views into the vent.
Several other explosive events occurred at the vent throughout 2008.[45]
On September 5, 2008, scientists observed a lava pond deep within
the Overlook Crater for the first time. Beginning in February 2010, a
lava pond was visible at the bottom of the crater almost continuously
through the beginning of May 2018. Lava briefly overflowed the vent onto
the floor of Halemaʻumaʻu Crater in April and May 2015, October 2016, and April 2018.[45][46][47]
2018 eruptive episodes
Lava from a fissure slowly advanced to the northeast on Hoʻokupu Street in Leilani Estates subdivision (May 5, 2018)
Beginning in March 2018, Hawaiian Volcano Observatory began to detect rapid inflation at Pu‘u ‘Ō‘ō,[48] leading scientists to warn that the increased pressure could lead to the formation of a new vent at Kilauea.[49]
Following weeks of increased pressure, the crater floor of the
cone of Puʻu ʻŌʻō collapsed on April 30, 2018, as magma migrated
underground into the lower Puna region of Kilauea's lower east rift
zone.[50] Over the next few days, hundreds of small earthquakes were detected on Kīlauea’s East rift zone,
leading officials to issue evacuation warnings. On May 3, 2018, new
fissures formed, and lava began erupting in lower Puna after a 5.0
earthquake earlier in the day, causing evacuations of the Leilani Estates and Lanipuna Gardens subdivisions.[51][52]
A massive Puna lava flow heads seaward on May 19, 2018
By May 21, two lava flows had reached the Pacific Ocean, creating thick clouds of laze (a toxic lava and haze cloud), which is made up of hydrochloric acid and glass particles.[56]
By May 31, 87 houses in Leilani Estates and nearby areas had been
destroyed by lava. Advancing lava flows caused additional evacuation
orders, including the town of Kapoho.[57][58]
By June 4, with the lava having crossed through Kapoho and entered the
ocean, the confirmed number of houses lost had reached 159.[59] Two weeks later, the confirmed number of homes lost was 533,[60] and as of June 25 it had risen to 657.[61]
Effect of the 2018 lower Puna eruption on Kīlauea's summit
In conjunction with the outbreak of lava in lower Puna, a lava lake at Halemaʻumaʻu Crater at Kilauea's summit began to drop on May 2, 2018.[50]
The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory warned that the lowering of the lava
lake increased the potential for phreatic (steam) explosions at the
summit caused by interaction of magma with the underground water table,
similar to the explosions that occurred at Halemaʻumaʻu in 1924. These concerns prompted the closure of Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park.[62] On May 17, at approximately 4:15 a.m., an explosive eruption occurred at Halemaʻumaʻu, creating a plume of ash 30,000 feet into the air.[63] This marked the beginning of a series of vigorous explosions that have produced significant ash plumes from Halemaʻumaʻu.[64] These explosions, accompanied by large earthquakes and inward slumping and collapse within and around Halemaʻumaʻu Crater, continue as of June 27, 2018.[65]
Volcanic Explosivity Index
The Global Volcanism Program has assigned a Volcanic Explosivity Index
(VEI; the higher the number, the more explosive) to all except five of
Kīlauea's ninety-five known eruptions of the last 11,700 years. The
eruption of 1790 has a VEI of 4. The eruptions of 1820, 1924, 1959 and
1960 have a VEI of 2. The eruptions of 680, 1050, 1490, 1500, 1610,
1868, four eruptions in 1961 and the current eruption since 1983 have a
VEI of 1. The other seventy-four eruptions have a VEI of 0.[66]
Volcanic Explosivity Index for Kīlauea
VEI
Number of Holocene eruptions for which a VEI has been assigned (total=90)
VEI 0
74
VEI 1
11
VEI 2
4
VEI 3
0
VEI 4
1
Ecology
Background
ʻŌhiʻa (Metrosideros polymorpha) growing on a barren lava field dating from 1986, formerly the village of Kalapana, Hawaii. The myrtle in this picture, taken in 2009, may have since been covered over—fresh flows in 2010 partially re-covered the area.
Because of its position more than 3,000 kilometers (2,000 mi) from the nearest continental landmass, the island of Hawaiʻi is one of the most geographically isolated landmasses on Earth; this in turn has strongly influenced its ecology. The majority of the species present on the island are endemic to it
and can be found nowhere else on Earth, the result of an isolated
evolutionary lineage sheltered from external biotic influence; this
makes its ecosystem vulnerable both to invasive species and human development, and an estimated third of the island's natural flora and fauna has already gone extinct.[67]
Kīlauea's ecological community is additionally threatened by the activity of the volcano itself;[29]
lava flows often overrun sections of the volcano's forests and burn
them down, and volcanic ash distributed by explosive eruptions often
smothers local plant life. Layers of carbonized organic material at the
bottom of Kīlauea ash deposits are evidence of the many times the
volcano has wrought destruction on its own ecosystem and that of its
neighbor Mauna Loa, and parts of the volcano present a dichotomy between
pristine montane forest and recently buried volcanic "deserts" yet to
be recolonized.[68]
Kīlauea's bulk affects local climate conditions through the influence of trade winds
coming predominately from the northeast, which, when squeezed upwards
by the volcano's height, results in a moister windward side and a
comparatively arid leeward flank. The volcano's ecology is further
complicated by height, though not nearly as much as with its other, far
taller neighbors, and by the local distribution of volcanic products,
making for varied soil conditions. The northern part of Kīlauea is
mostly below 1,000 m (3,281 ft) and receives more than 75 in (191 cm)
mean annual rainfall, and can mostly be classified as a lowland wet
community; farther south, the volcano has squeezed out much of the
precipitation and receives less than 50 in (127 cm) mean annual
rainfall, and is considered mostly a lowland dry environment.[69]
Ecosystems
The 'amakihi (Chlorodrepanis virens) is one of the many birds that live on the volcano's flanks.
Some of the area alongside Kīlauea's southwestern rift zone takes the form of the unusual Kaʻū Desert.
Although not a "true" desert (rainfall there exceeds the maximum
1,000 mm (39 in) a year), precipitation mixing with drifting volcanic sulfur dioxide forms acid rain with a pH as low as 3.4, greatly hampering regional plant growth.[73] The deposited tephra particulates make the local soil very permeable. Plant life in the region is practically nonexistent.[74]
The first Ancient Hawaiians to arrive on Hawaii island lived along the shores, where food and water were plentiful.[78] Flightless birds that had previously known no predators became a staple food source.[79]
Early settlements had a major impact on the local ecosystem, and caused
many extinctions, particularly amongst bird species, as well as
introducing foreign plants and animals and increasing erosion rates.[80]
The prevailing lowland forest ecosystem was transformed from forest to
grassland; some of this change was caused by the use of fire, but the
main reason appears to have been the introduction of the Polynesian rat (Rattus exulans).[81]
The summits of the five volcanoes of Hawaii are revered as sacred mountains. Hawaiians associated elements of their natural environment with particular deities. In Hawaiian mythology, the sky fatherWākea marries the earth motherPapa, giving birth to the Hawaiian Islands.[79] Kīlauea itself means "spewing" or "much spreading" in Hawaiian, referencing its high state of activity,[3] and in Hawaiian mythology, Kīlauea is the body of the deity Pele, goddess of fire, lightning, wind, and volcanoes.[82] It is here that the conflict between Pele and the rain godKamapuaʻa was centered; Halemaʻumaʻu, "House of the ʻamaʻumaʻu fern", derives its name from the struggle between the two gods. Kamapuaʻa,
hard-pressed by Pele's ability to make lava spout from the ground at
will, covered the feature, a favorite residence of the goddess, with
fern fronds. Choked by trapped smoke, Pele emerged. Realizing that each
could threaten the other with destruction, the other gods called a draw
and divided the island between them, with Kamapuaʻa getting the moist windward northeastern side, and Pele directing the drier Kona (or leeward) side. The rusty singed appearance of the young fronds of the ʻamaʻumaʻu is said to be a product of the legendary struggle.[83]
This early era was followed by peace and cultural expansion
between the 12th and late 18th century. Land was divided into regions
designed for both the immediate needs of the populace and the long-term
welfare of the environment. These ahupuaʻa generally took the form of long strips of land oriented from the mountain summits to the coast.[79]
Modern era
A view from Kīlauea's eastern rift zone captured during a USGS expedition.
The first foreigner to arrive at Hawaii was James Cook in 1778.[84] The first non-native to observe Kīlauea in detail was William Ellis, an English missionary
who in 1823 spent more than two weeks trekking across the volcano. He
collated the first written account of the volcano and observed many of
its features, establishing a premise for future explorations of the
volcano.[85]
Another missionary, C. S. Stewart, U.S.N., wrote of it in his journal 'A Residence in the Sandwich Islands', which Letitia Elizabeth Landon quoted from in the notes to her poem 'The Volcano of Ki-Rau-E-A' in Fisher's Drawing Room Scrap Book, 1832.
One of the earliest and most important surveyors of Kīlauea was James Dwight Dana, who, staying with the missionary Titus Coan, studied the island's volcanoes in detail for decades first-hand.[86] Dana visited Kīlauea's summit and described it in detail in 1840.[87]
After publishing a summary paper in 1852, he directed a detailed
geological study of the island in 1880 and 1881 but did not consider
Kīlauea a separate volcano, instead referring to it as a flank vent of
Mauna Loa; it was not until another geologist, C. E. Dutton, had elaborated on Dana's research during an 1884 expedition that Kīlauea came to be generally accepted as a separate entity.[88]:154–155
The next era of Kīlauea's history began with the establishment of the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory
on the volcano's rim in 1912. The first permanent such installation in
the United States, the observatory was the brainchild of Thomas Jaggar, head of geology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology; after witnessing the devastation of the 1908 Messina earthquake near Mount Etna
in Italy, he declared that something must be done to support systematic
volcanic and seismic study, and chose Kīlauea as the site of the first
such establishment. After securing initial funding from MIT and the University of Hawaii,
Jaggar took directorship of the observatory and, whilst its head
between 1912 and 1940, pioneered seismological and observational study
and observation of active volcanoes.[89] After initial funding ran out, the Observatory was successively funded by the National Weather Service, the United States Geological Survey (USGS), and the National Park Service,
before settling on the USGS, under whose banner the observatory has
been operating since 1947. The main building has been moved twice since
establishment, and today is positioned on the northwest rim of Kīlauea's
caldera.[90]
NASA used the area to geologically train the Apollo Astronauts
in recognizing volcanic features, planning traverses, collecting
samples and taking photographs. Training took place in April 1969,
April 1970, December 1970, December 1971, and June 1972. Astronauts of Apollo 12, Apollo 14, Apollo 15, Apollo 16 and Apollo 17 used this training on the Moon. Notable geologist instructors included William R. Muehlberger.[91]
In its early days, tourism was a relatively new concept, but grew
slowly before exploding with the advent of air travel around 1959, the
year Hawaiʻi became a state. Today, tourism is driven by the island's exotic tropical locations,[96]
and Kīlauea, being one of the few volcanoes in the world in a more or
less constant state of moderate eruption, was a major part of the
island's tourist draw.[97]
Until its closure on May 11 due to the danger and damage associated
with the 2018 Lower East Rift Zone and summit events, Kīlauea was
visited by roughly 2.6 million people annually, most of whom proceeded
to visit the volcano from the Kilauea Visitor Center near the park
entrance. The Thomas A. Jaggar Museum
was also a popular tourist stop; located at the edge of Kīlauea
caldera, the museum's observation deck offered the best sheltered view
on the volcano of the activity at Halema'uma'u Crater. The Volcano House
provided the nearest lodging, and the nearby Volcano Village the most numerous; visitors associated with the military could find lodging at the Kilauea Military Camp. A number of hiking trails, points of interest, and guided ranger programs existed, and the Chain of Craters Road, Hilina Pali Road, and Crater Rim Drive provided access.[98][99] In 2008, a Lava Viewing Area was opened by the county for tourists in Kalapana, on the southeastern side of the National Park, accessible only from State Route 130.
