He Wehi Lei Moʻolelo
Aia wale nō ia i ke au i kūnewa akula, ma ia wā ho‘i i kuku‘i ai ka lono ko‘iko‘i e kau ana i ke aheahe o ka welelau makani, nā leo hiwahiwa ho‘i o Kūpuna mā e upu ana mai loko mai o nā kūʻono li‘ili‘i o nā nūpepa o nā koa make‘e ‘ōlelo, a e kūpina‘i mau mai ana a hiki nō i kēia au e ne‘e nei, kohu pine ho‘i i ‘ōmou ‘ia a pa‘a ma ka poli ha‘aheo o nā kupa, e paipai mau mai ana iā kākou ē, “Mai Ha‘alele i ka ‘Ōlelo Makuahine.” A ‘o ia aloha ho‘i i ‘ō‘ili mai loko mai o ia mau Kūpuna, a i welo ha‘aheo ho‘i i loko nō na‘e o kona ‘ane ‘āha‘i ‘ia i ka wili‘ōka‘i o ka makani lauhulu kolonaio, ‘o ia nō ka i ‘ike ‘ia e nā maka o nā pulapula, ka mea ho‘i e koikoi mau mai ana i ka mauli kanaka, e kūpa‘a, i pulelo mau ia aloha ‘ōlelo Makuahine, ‘a‘ole wale nō no kēia wā akā, no kēia mua aku nō na‘e ho‘i.
I ka makahiki 1921, i ho‘okahi kenekulia aku nei, ‘o kekahi o nā wahi i ‘ike ʻia ai ka waiwai nui ko‘iko‘i o ka ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i, ‘o ia nō Ke Kulanui o Hawai‘i ma Mānoa. A ma muli o ke koikoi a me ke kāko‘o ‘ana o Dr. Arthur Lyman Dean, ka Pelekikena o ke kulanui ma ia wā, ua wehe ‘ia ka papa ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i mua loa ma ke kau hā‘ulelau o ia makahiki:
“President A. L. Dean of the University of Hawaii, in compliance with resolutions adopted at the special session of the legislature made a recommendation today that instuction in the Hawaiian language be ʻput on the same plane of scholarship as instruction in any other language.’”...“He asserted that the University should become a center for the study of the Hawaiian language, adding that a strong effort will be made to preserve the ancient tongue in its purity.” 3/04/1921, The Hawai‘i Herald
Me ia ho‘oholo ‘ana, a i mea ho‘i e paipai ai i ke kaiāulu a me nā haumāna o ke kulanui nō ho‘i e komo ma ka papa ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i, ua ho‘olaha ‘ia ka papa ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i mua i ka nui lehulehu ma ka nūpepa Honolulu Star-Bulletin. A pēia kona ho‘olaha ‘ia i ka lā 5 o Kepakemapa: “Hawaiian is Not a Dead Language ...” Kohu mea lā, he ualo leo kēia e ho‘ākāka pololei ana, ‘a‘ole ‘o ka ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i he ‘ōlelo make akā, he ‘ōlelo ola nō ia a “... To many people in this Territory a knowledge of the Hawaiian language is important.”
I ka heluhelu ‘ia ‘ana o kēia mana‘o, ho‘i hou ku‘u hāli‘a aloha i nā Kūpuna makamae
i paio no ka ho‘omau ‘ia o ka ‘ōlelo Makuahine - E like ho‘i me Nakuina, Nawahiokalaniopuu, Kaniho, Kupihea, Kawelo, Kapaona, Kauaihilo a me Hon. Charles H. Pulaa, ka mea ho‘i i ho‘ohanohano ‘ia penei:
“Na kou ahonui a noeau a he loea Kanawai i hoopiha ia e ka uwila, ua hana iho oe me ke ahonui a paaua, e hoole ana i ke Kanawai e umi ana i ka olelo Hawaii i pio no ka manawa pau ole, i hookuu ia ae la mai kona noho pio ana. A ma ia hana wiwoole ana au, nolaila, ke haawi a ke pahola aku nei makou i ko makou hoomaikai ana a nui nou.” 5/23/1903 Ke Aloha Aina
A no laila, i ke kau hā‘ulelau nō o ia makahiki, 1921, ua hai
‘ia ‘o Frederick Kahalapula Beckley, ke keikikāne a Emma
Kaili Metcalf, he mamo na nā ali‘i o O‘ahu a he lēdē ukali
ali‘i nō ho‘i ‘o ia no Ka Mō‘ī Wahine Kapiolani. Ma muli o ko Beckley ho‘ona‘auao ‘ia ‘ana a me kona pili i ka ho‘oilina ali‘i, ua kaulana ‘o ia i kona kūlana hiehie akamai, he kāne hohonu ho‘i o ka ‘ike. Ua a‘o ‘o Beckley i nā papa ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i ma ke kulanui no ‘elima makahiki, a i kona ha‘alele ‘ana i ka makahiki 1926, ua hai ‘ia ‘o John Henry Wise, ‘o ia ke kumu ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i hou. He koa kūpa‘a ‘o Wise i ka ho‘omau ‘ia o ka ‘ōlelo, a upu maila
ku‘u ho‘omana‘o ‘ana i ka ‘ōlelo a ke kupunahine kuakahi o‘u, ‘o Rev.
Abbie Oneha e pili ana i kona a‘o ‘ia ‘ana e Wise:
“Mai [John Wise] mai e ‘ike ai au i ka ‘ōlelo Makuahine ... nāna i a‘o mai ia‘u ʻMai ‘ōlelo Haole ‘oe, ‘ōlelo ‘oe ... ‘ōlelo Makuahine wale nō ... ‘a‘ole ‘ōlelo Haole’ ... pēlā au i na‘auao ai i ka ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i. A hau‘oli au i ku‘u ‘ike ‘ana, hiki ia‘u ke ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i.” Ka Leo Hawai‘i 12/16/73 HV 24.49A
No ‘ewalu makahiki i a‘o ai ‘o Wise i ka ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i ma ke kulanui,
a i kona ha‘alele ‘ana i ka makahiki 1934, ua hai ‘ia ‘o Henry Judd. Me ke
kāko‘o o nā kahu kula o ke kulanui, ua ho‘ohiki ‘ia ka ho‘onui ‘ana i ka nui
o nā papa ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i, ke pi‘i pū mai ka nui o nā haumāna e makemake ana e
komo. I ka makahiki 1935, ua palapala ‘ia ma ka nūpepa, ua hō‘ea ka nui o nā haumāna i kākau inoa no nā papa ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i a i ka ho‘okahi haneli. A no laila, ua ho‘onui pū ‘ia nō ho‘i ka nui o nā papa a i ‘eono papa, mai ka pae makahiki ‘ekahi a i ka pae makahiki ‘ekolu.
I ka makahiki 1949, ua ho‘omaka ka ho‘olaha ‘ia ‘ana o nā papa ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i ma lalo o ka Asiatic and Pacific Languages a i ka makahiki 1956 a i ka makahiki 1971, ua ho‘olaha ‘ia nā papa ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i ma lalo o ka Asian and Pacific Languages. I loko nō o ia mau makahiki he kanalima o ke a‘o ‘ia ‘ana o ka ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i, 1921-1971, ua ho‘okumu pū ‘ia nō ka papa ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i pae makahiki ‘ehā, ka papa mele, HAW 210-Hawaiian Traditional Poetry a me ka papa pilina ‘ōlelo, HAW452-Structure of Hawaiian. He mau papa nō ia i a‘o ‘ia na Kauka Samuel H. Elbert me Rubellite Kawena Johnson. E like me ka pi‘i ‘ana o ka nui o nā haumāna, ua pi‘i pū nō ho‘i ka nui o nā papa. I ka makahiki 1971, ua ho‘omaka ‘ia ka ho‘olaha ‘ia o nā papa ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i ma lalo o ka Indo-Pacific Languages o ke kulanui.
‘O ia mau nō ka pi‘i ‘ana o ka helu o nā haumāna a pēia pū nō ho‘i ka ho‘onui ‘ia ‘ana o ka nui o nā papa. I ke Kau Kupulau o ka makahiki 1981, ua ho‘omaka ‘ia ka hā‘awi ‘ia ‘ana o ke kekelē laepua ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i, a ‘o Ekela Kaniaupio Crozier lāua ‘o Puanani Wilhelm nā haumāna mua i puka me ia kekelē. I ke kauwela o ia makahiki, ua puka nō ho‘i ‘o Kawehi Lucas. I ka makahiki 1999, ua ho‘oholo kūhelu ‘ia ke kapa hou ‘ia ‘ana o ke ke‘ena Indo-Pacific Languages, ‘o ia ka Hawaiian and Indo-Pacific Languages and Literatures. A laila, i ka makahiki 2008, ua ho‘okumu ‘ia Ka Hālau ‘Ōlelo Hawai‘i ‘o Kawaihuelani ma lalo o Hawai‘inuiākea School of Hawaiian Knowledge, a ua kapa ‘ia kona inoa ma muli o ka wai ‘o Huelani, ka luawai ho‘i o Ke Ali‘i Wahine Kaahumanu, aia lā ma kahi e kū ana kona home ma Puka ‘Ōma‘omaʻo ma uka aku ho‘i o Mānoa. ‘O Huelani nō ho‘i ke alanui
i noho ai ka wahine pāpahi lei na‘auao ‘ike Kupuna, ‘o Mary Kawena Pukui. A
ma muli o Huelani, ia wai ho‘i i kena ai ke pu‘u o Ke Ali‘i Wahine, ua lana
maila ka mana‘o o nā kumu, he puʻuhonua ‘o Kawaihuelani e a‘o ‘ia ai ka
‘ōlelo Makuahine, i ola ho‘i ka lāhui i ka ‘ale‘ale hou ‘ana mai o nā
‘auwai o ka ‘ike Kupuna.
E like me ke pi‘i hou ‘ana o ka helu o nā haumāna, pēia pū nō ho‘i
ka ho‘onui ‘ia ‘ana o ka nui o nā papa ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i a hiki i kēia
makahiki. ‘O kekahi o nā papa i piha mau i nā haumāna like ‘ole,
‘o ia nō ka papa HAW 100-Language in Hawai‘i. Mai kona wā i
ho‘olaha mua ‘ia ai i ka makahiki 2008, ua hoihoi loa nā haumāna
i ke komo a i kēia mau makahiki i hala iho nei, he mea ma‘amau ka ho‘olaha ‘ia ‘ana o 10-12 mau papa a he piha mau nō ho‘i ia mau papa
700; he 46 papa laepua a he 15 mau papa laeo‘o. A i ke Kau Kupulau nei, 2021, ua kākau inoa he 1,050 mau haumāna no nā papa he 57 i ho‘olaha ‘ia i kēia kau kulanui, Kau Kupulau 2021. A no ia kumu e hāpai ‘ia a‘e nei ku‘u leo mahalo i piha ho‘i me ka ho‘omaika‘i i Ke Akua i kona lokomaika‘i mau a me nā Kūpuna ho‘i nāna i waele mua aku i ke ala e hehi a‘e nei ko kākou mau kapua‘i wāwae i kēia wā, i meheu hou aku no nā pulapula o mua aku e hahai ai.
A me ia mana‘o ho‘okahi wale iho nō, no ka mahalo ‘ana ho‘i i ka piha ‘ana o nā makahiki he 100 o ke a‘o ‘ia ‘ana o ka ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i ma ke kulanui nei, a no ka piha ‘ana nō ho‘i o ka ho‘okahi ka‘au makahiki (1981 – 2021) o ka hā‘awi kekelē ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i o Ke Kulanui o Hawai‘i ma Mānoa, ua ho‘olālā ‘o Kawaihuelani i ke pa‘i ‘ana i puke e ho‘ohanohano ‘ia ai nā haumāna, he 448 i puka me ia kekelē ho‘oheno ‘ōlelo Makuahine ma Ke Kulanui nei o Hawai‘i ma Mānoa. A pēlā pū ko mākou ho‘ohanohano ‘ana i nā mānaleo, nā polopeka, nā kumu a‘o a me nā limahana i alulike pū mai a i ‘auamo like ho‘i i kēia kuleana nui, i kō kēia pahuhopu nui e pono ai nā mamo a Hāloa.
Me ke aloha nui,
Dr. R. Keawe Lopes Jr., Ke Po‘o
Ka Hālau ‘Ōlelo Hawai‘i ʻo Kawaihuelani
Ke Kulanui o Hawai‘i ma Mānoa
i nā haumāna he 300 a ‘oi. Ua makemake wale nō kēia e hāpai aku i ku‘u leo ho‘ohanohano iā Kauka Noeau Warner, ka me‘e ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i nāna i haku
i ia papa.
I loko nō o ka piha ‘ana a‘e nei o nā makahiki he 100 o nā papa ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i
ma ke kulanui, ua auālipo a pū‘iwa kāhāhā nō ho‘i ku‘u maka i ka ‘ike, aia nō
he 61 mau papa ‘ōlelo Hawai‘i, mai ka papa HAW 100 a hiki i ka papa HAW
