Aloha kakou.
Back in 2007 at the Hula O na Keiki festival on Maui spectators were privileged to witness two hula chants whose origins are lost in the mists of time. There 'inoa are: "Aia ka La'i i Ka'uiki" me "Aia ka La'i Pi'iholo," these long lost and forgotten mele were rediscovered thanks to the patient researchers and kumu hula who uncovered them in the March 6th, 1862 issue of ka nupepa "Ka Hoku O Ka Pakipika."
Next Monday week the 26th of September 2011 marks the 150th anniversary of the very first issue of this particular newspaper, which made it's maiden debut on September 26th of 1861. It's significance is it was published in ka 'olelo Hawai'i BY Hawaiian Nationals.
In 1853 almost three quarters of the Native Hawaiian population over the age of 16 were literate in ka 'olelo Hawai'i, just a decade ago speakers of Hawaiian on the archipelago amounted to less than 0.1%. Maybe we can look at that statistic again so that it registers, back in 2001 native speakers of ka 'olelo Hawai'i were less than 0.1% of the population. What accounted for this decline?
It can be largely attributed to the 1896 Act suppression of the Hawaiian language (among others bar English) in schools which Hawaiian patriot Professor Noenoe Silva wrote of:
"The majority of people in succeeding generations of Kanaka Maoli grew up ignorant of their heritage language, and it eventually ceased to be one of the commonly spoken languages of the land. It was, and is, kept alive on the island of Ni'ihau and the Ni'ihau community on Kaua'i, and among the few elderly native speakers who remain."
The very first newspaper printed in Hawai'i and in Hawaiian was on February 14th of 1834 which was "Ka Lama Hawaii" (The Hawaiian Torch/Luminary), founded by Lorrin Andrews at the Lahainaluna seminary on Maui. The missionary element were to have the monopoly and dominance of local media in this respect a number of years ago a local comedian doing the rounds was pono with the observation "They gave us the bible and told us to look up, and when we looked down.... our land was gone."
Between 1834 right up to 1948 some 168 different Hawaiian language newspapers were published. The first Hawaiian language daily newspaper was "Ka Manawa" (The Time) founded in 1870 and edited by HRH Prince David Kalakaua, earlier in 1855 "The Folio" was the first nupepa wahine which generally catered to the feminist movement. By 1929 only 3 Hawaiian language newspapers remained locally.
The weekly nupepa "Ka Hoku O ka Pakipika" at $6.00 annual subscription broke Nationalistic and patriotic ground, in it's Editorial of October 31st, 1861 it published the following:
"This newspaper was established so that the opinions of the Native Hawaiians would be published, not to help a particular religious denomination." Earlier that month on October 3rd the Editorial noted:
"When it [Ka Hoku O Ka Pakipaki] was born, it was the face of the Hawaiian, it was Hawaiian people, it was a Hawaiian body, with Hawaiian feet."
This September 2011 let us momentarily reflect on where are the Hawaiian language newspapers today? As Ludwig Wittgenstein noted: "The limits of my language are the limits of my World."
In your local library you may come across the bilingual "Ka Wai Ola o OHA" or "Native Hawaiian" (Alu Like) but where are the true newspaper representations of contemporary Hawaiian Nationals? It would be a suggested mana'o by way of viewpoint for some group of patriotic Hawaiian Nationals to revive in the spirit of Joseph Nawahi a local newspaper or newsletter provisionally on one island to calculate interest (be it monthly or quarterly as finances permit) written in Hawaiian or even bilingual to propagate the Hawaiian Independence cause, additionally in order that na haumana of ka 'olelo Hawai'i could learn the language and thought processes of the Hawaiian National community. An unknown wise person once stated: "If you can speak 3 languages you are trilingual, if you can speak 2 languages you are bilingual, if you can speak only 1 language.... you are American."
The Hana Kupono Hula protocol is equally applicable to the media i keia manawa: "It is the right behaviour, conducted at the approprite time, by the proper people, presented to the correct recipients toward a positive, and significant end."
In "Ka Hoku O Ka Pakipika" the first Editorial presented the rallying call:
"Native born children of Hawaii. Here is a new newspaper that Hawaiians have established with the thought of enriching the nation."
The first Editor of "Ka Hoku O Ka Pakipika" was G.W. Mila, with the lawyer J.W. Kauwahi , and S.N. Naleole as the other owners of this newspaper which was published by J.K. Kaunamano. His Excellency David Kalakaua who was to become Mo'i of Hawai'i in 1874, was Luna Nui (Editor) of the newspaper for a short period also and identified as such on August 21st of 1862. The front page of the first issue on September 26th of 1861 contained a serialization of "Mo'olelo no Kawelo" by S.K. Kawailiula, on the fourth page was a birth chant by S.K. Kuapuu. On the third page was a funeral lament (kanikau) by Mrs. Apia Miner for Edwin Miner of Makawao, the newspaper covered much during it's publication particularly specializing in local affairs such as the Kingdom Legislative session of 1862. It later published the complete version of Joseph Mokuohia Poepoe's "Ka mo'olelo o Hi'iaka-i-ka-Poli-o-Pele."
After the inaugural publication of Ka Hoku O Ka Pakipika the following month (October) came Whitney's "Ka Nupepa Kuokao" described as the first Hawaiian independent newspaper at the time meaning independence from Governmental influence, this contained much local lore, canoe carving, mo'olelo, fishing, medicinal plants, etc. It had the advantage of being distributed to Moloka'i, Ni'ihau, and Lanai which "Ka Hoku O Ka Pakipika" did not. However behind the scenes Henry Whitney attempted to subvert Ka Hoku O Ka Papipika by elevating the cost of printing same as he actually controlled the Kingdom printing press. The former newspaper leveled the charge that Whitney was "rich and well-situated" and that his newspaper was the voice of haole businessmen.
It was Ralph Waldo Emerson who said: "Language is the archive of history." The 'ike pili these pages display cannot be underestimated Hawaiian stories by Hawaiian Kupuna speaking across the generations directly to you the Hawaiian National, please do not let their voices to have been in vain for according to a Paki 'olelo no'eau: "Even the palest ink is better than the best memory." If you are interested you can find the "Ka Hoku O Ka Pakipika" archives online from 26th September 1861 to May 14th 1863 just click on the "Ka Hoku O Ka Pakipika" icon here:
http://libweb.hawaii.edu/digicoll/hoku/hoku_htm/hoku.htm
As a footnote, it has been suggested by some accounts that there are approximately 1,000 Native Hawaiian speakers with roughly over 8,000 who can comprehend and speak it fluently. Kamehameha Schools have done a survey earlier this year on Hawaiian language speakers you can find their results by clicking here:
http://www.ksbe.edu/spi/PDFS/Lang_prevalence.pdf
Aloha & mahalo for taking the time to read!
-'Onipa'a.
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