Ka 'Aina O Ka Makani Ka'ili Aloha
Kipahulu is a moku, a traditional district or land division. The island of Maui consists of thirteen traditional mokus, four of which comprise East Maui: Ko'olau, Hana, Kipahulu and Kaupo. Each moku contains multiple ‘ahupua‘a.
The moku signage project was initiated in East Maui by Kau'i Kanaka'ole and her 'ohana in the Ko'olau moku. Signs that show the moku name and a traditional 'olelo no'eau (wise saying) about the moku—in Hawaiian and English—were placed on Hana Highway at each boundary of the Ko'olau moku, with the name of the moku being entered shown on each side of the sign.
The Kipahulu Ohana, working in partnership with the Kipahulu Community Association and with the cultural guidance of Kau'i Kanaka'ole, picked up this project for the Kipahulu moku, designing signs to be placed at the Hana and Kaupo boundaries. The signs were installed on June 7, 2014.
The purpose of moku signage is to serve as a reminder of the traditional land system, so that travelers on the Hana Highway know when they are entering a new moku, and understand that the traditional people of that moku are still here, practicing our culture and lifestyles, and managing our lands and resources.
(The locations are not exactly on the moku boundaries, but in the closest location where there was adequate space to install the signs and where they could be read safely by travelers.)
The signs have the following sayings:
KIPAHULU: Ka 'Aina O Ka Makani Ka'ili Aloha — Land of the Love-Snatching Wind
KAUPO: Ka 'Aina O Ka Ua Pe'e Pohaku — Land of the Rain that Makes One Hide Behind Rocks
HANA: Ka 'Aina O Ka Ua Kea — Land of the White Misty Rain
Below is an old newspaper article telling the story of the Love-Snatching Wind of Kipahulu, which is also expressed in the famous song and hula...
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Ka Makani Ka'ili Aloha (The Kipahulu Zephyr) by Matthew Kane |
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I love the Chorus: Beloved is this home |
