by Leilehua Yuen, copyright 2018
For four generations, Hawaiian people were told that their ancestors had come to the Hawaiian Islands by accident, that they had drifted to Hawaiʻi on rafts which had been lost at sea.
We were told this, even though the histories of our kūpuna, our ancestors, clearly told the stories of how Polynesians had first come here. But our parents and grandparents were told, “No, your stories are imaginary. They could not possibly have happened.”
In the 1960s and 1970s, more and more Hawaiians started hunting for ways to learn if our own histories were true. One way was by copying the voyages our histories said our ancestors had made. In 1976, a group of people in Hawaiʻi set sail on the canoe Hōkūleʻa, and proved that the great voyages that our histories described were, indeed, possible!
To travel such vast distances, the navigators of ancient times used many clues offered by the world around them. The directions the sun, moon, and stars traveled, that the clouds moved, that the ocean swells rolled. They noticed that changing colors of clouds indicated land or open ocean. They knew that birds could only fly so far before needing to rest on the land, and that the birds flew away from land in the morning and toward land in the evening. They smelled the changing scent of the air as it blew across the land or sea. They felt the movement of the canoes change depending on the type of swell of wave washing against the hull. All these clues and more told them where they were, and how to find where they were going.
Among the methods used by our ancestors to navigate the Pacific Ocean was memorizing the movement of the stars. To help them do this, they created imaginary lines from star to star. These Star Lines helped them remember where and when the different stars would rise and set, and the paths the stars would travel across the sky. The stars were then used as guides to help them travel from place to place.
The star lines on the wall at Visitor Information Station on Mauna Kea are among those used today by Hawaiian navigators. The star field is what would be seen about midnight on November 17, if the wall and all obstructions to the horizon were invisible.
November 17 was chosen, because it is on that night that we look to Nā Wahine o Makaliʻi, or Makaliʻi, rising just after sunset as a sign that the new year will soon begin. After Makaliʻi rises, we begin to look for the first slim crescent of the new moon rising in the dawn sky. In 2018, that will be December 9. That night, Makahiki, the Hawaiian New Year, begins.
Hawaiian Planets, Stars, and Constellations
Hawaiian planets, stars and constellations may be known by several different names. Sailors may use one name, farmers another, and priests yet another. The name may be different to describe the time of night the object is visible, or the angle above the horizon at which it is seen.
The first major astronomical object we see in the evening of November 17 is Nā Wahine o Makaliʻi (The Wives of Makaliʻi). This tiny beautiful constellation is also also known as Na kā o Makali‘i (The Bailers of Makali‘i), Na kōkō a Makali‘i (The Nets of Makali‘i), Nā Huihui o Makali‘i (“The Cluster of Makali‘i”), and Huihui Kōkō a Makali‘i Kau i Luna (“Makali‘i’s Rainbow Colored Nets Hung Above”). People often shorten the name to simply be “Makaliʻi.” A renowned constellation in virtually all cultures, in Japanese it is known as Subaru, in Greek Pleiades, in Chinese Mǎo, and by many other names in other cultures.
It is followed by Makaliʻi (Eyes of the Chief), also known in Hawaiian as Hōkūʻula (Red Star) and in Greek as Aldebaran. In one story, the triangular asterism above Makaliʻi is Peʻa, the sail of Makaliʻi’s canoe.
The next object to rise in the evening sky is Hōkūlei (Stars Rising like a Cloud). The name is given both to the star known in Greek as Capella, and to the constellation known in Greek as Auriga.
Lanalana (Spider), named Orion in Greek, accompanies Hōkūlei. The markings on the spiderʻs back are named Nā Kao (The Darts). In the Greek constellation, they are Orion’s belt and sword. Lanalana walks along her thread, the celestial equator. Kaʻawili (To Writhe), is the first star in Nā Kao to rise. It is right beside the equator. Finding the equator gives the navigator a straight line to measure other angles from.
By knowing the angles of the Star Lines compared to the celestial equator, the navigator can “see” his or her position on the ocean in relation to the Star Lines.
To remember the Star line of Ke Kā o Makaliʻi (not Nā Kā o Makaliʻi), people can use mnemonics. Mnemonics are techniques to help us remember things. Poems are useful mnemonics. Here is a simple one to help us remember the order of the stars in Ke Kā o Makaliʻi.
Rising like a cloud is Hōkūlei in Ke Kā
Two stars follow Hōkūlei
Nānā-mua then Nānā-hope
Puana tells the refrain
ʻAʻā is attended by Kōkoko
Kōkoko looks to Kealiʻikonaikalewa
By memorizing how the stars are arranged on the Star Lines, and the angles the lines form with the horizon, navigators can accurately tell where they are.
Additional Resources in Hawaiian Astronomy
Navigating without instruments
General Astronomy Resources
International Astronomical Union Constellations
Recommended Books
Whenever I tell stories of our Hawaiian stars and constellations, people always ask me what books they should buy. Here is my most recent list, which contains some new materials as well as classics.
And. . . if you are in Hilo stop by Basically Books, at 334 Kilauea Ave, Hilo, HI 96720. Phone them at 1-808-961-0144. Email to bbinfo@basicallybooks.com. The folks there know books, so ask them what they recommend for your specific interest area.
Purchasing through Basically Books helps a family-owned business in Hilo! They also can ship many items!
Purchasing through the Amazon affiliate links helps keep this website running, as it is my own labor of love. Both choices are appreciated!
NA INOA HOKU: HAWAIIAN AND PACIFIC STAR NAMES
Rubellite Kawena Johnson, John Kaipo Mahelona, and Clive Ruggles
The foundation book around which you should build your Hawaiian astronomy library is Nā Inoa Hōkū, the seminal compendium of Hawaiian astronomical lore. When originally published in 1975 it was the first, and remains the most comprehensive such work. Hawaiian scholars Rubellite Kawena Johnson and John Kaipo Mahelona created a work that is still widely regarded as a definitive source of reference for anyone interested in the use of astronomy in Polynesian voyaging or the nature and development of ritual and calendrical practices throughout the Pacific.
Working together with British archaeoastronomer Clive Ruggles, the authors have extensively revised and extended the catalogues and transformed the discussion of their wider context and significance, resulting in a much stronger focus upon the rich historical legacy of the Hawaiian Islands themselves. This new edition of Nā Inoa Hōkū is completely overhauled, vastly expanded, and includes new translation of many key primary Hawaiian sources from the mid-nineteenth century onwards.
Stars Over Hawaiʻi
Edwin H. Bryan, Richard Crowe, Timothy F. Slater
Click text link below to purchase
Another foundational book for your library is Stars Over Hawaiʻi. For many of us who grew up in the islands, this was our first book on astronomy which centered the Hawaiian night sky, rather than the sky over North America. This is an excellent introduction to the science of Astronomy. It includes some of the Greek and Roman mythology associated with the constellations, twelve monthly star charts, and two charts with Hawaiian star names.
Readers can learn about “Lahaina Noon,” when the sun casts no shadow, a phenomenon exclusive to latitudes near the equator, and will be introduced to Hawaiian Astronomy through legend, surviving oral history, and the ongoing observation of the skies and our planet.
It includes the Hawaiian Moon Calendar is discussed and the Nights of the Moon are depicted and labeled in Hawaiian and other Pacific languages. The Polynesian Voyaging Society’s Star Compass is included.
First published over 60 years ago, this latest edition builds upon a solid foundation to bring star gazers up to date with current statistics and theories about our universe. Stars Over Hawai i marries the knowledge of the masterful navigators and astronomers of ancient Hawai i with today’s astronomy experts to bring you an integrated view of Hawai i’s skies, past and present.
North Star to Southern Cross
Will Kyselka, Ray Lanterman
Click text link below to purchase
Informed by a decade of teaching audiences in the Bishop Museum planetarium and star parties by the sea with thousands of young people, the book was designed to provide a framework for understanding the heavens. It is intended for a range of readers, from youngsters to adults, from country folk to city dwellers, from the arm chair enthusiast to the avid night hiker.
Filled with images and charts, and easy-to-read text, this book is an excellent starting point for the new star gazer, and a great refresher for the experienced.
Moʻolelo Kilo Hōkū
by Leilehua Yuen
To purchase, contact Basically Books, 334 Kilauea Ave, Hilo, HI 96720. Phone them at 1-808-961-0144. Email to bbinfo@basicallybooks.com.
This log book for charting Hawaiian stars goes far beyond the usual offering. Written in both Hawaiian and English, it is useful for anyone studying astronomy and/or the Hawaiian language. Yuen gave talks on Hawaiian astronomy for over 20 years. She is now putting all of that research into a series of books on Hawaiian astronomy.
In addition to charting pages for sketching your observations and making notes, there are sample pages showing how to use the charts, an astronomy vocabulary/glossary section which lists the Hawaiian and English translations of astronomical terms, constellations, stars, etc. Hawaiian stories of some famous constellations are included.
Another unique feature is the chart of the Hawaiian lunar phases which shows the orientation of the moon when it rises.
Charts include traditional Hawaiian calendar systems from different areas in the archipelago and a chart of principal meteor showers.
Ample room for notes and clippings, and a bibliography with both book titles and URLs complete the workbook.
On the cover, be sure to write your own name in as co-author!
161 pages, approximately 30 are resource/info and the remaining are sky charts for you to fill in.
Back cover text in Hawaiian: Ua hoʻomaka ʻo Leilehua Yuen e aʻo aku i nā haʻawina kilo hōkū i ka makahiki 1997 i ka manawa mua āna i aʻo aku i nā moʻolelo hōkū ma ka Visitor Information Station i Mauna Kea.
Aʻo aku ʻo Kumu Leilehua i nā haʻawina kilo hōkū ma ke ʻano he haʻi moʻolelo. Ua koho ʻo ia i nā moʻolelo piha hoʻi me nā kaona i mea e makana aku ai i nā haunauna e hiki mai ana.
Hoʻokumu ʻia kēia puke moʻomanaʻo o no ke kōkua ʻana iā ʻoe e aʻo aku e pili ana i nā moʻolelo kilo hōkū, nā ʻikepili, nā kuhikuhina o ke kilo ʻana, a me ka hoʻopaʻa ʻana i nā mea i kilo ʻia ai.
Back cover text in English: Kumu D. Leilehua Yuen has taught perspectives of Hawaiʻi astronomy since 1997 when she gave her first presentation on Hawaiian star lore at the Visitor Information Station on Mauna Kea.
Kumu Leilehua approaches Hawaiian astronomical concepts from the perspective of a storyteller, seeking to leaarn what lessons were considered so important that they were encoded into tales passed down through the generations.
This logbook is designed to help you begin your journey in learning about Hawaiian star lore by providing some background information, som suggestions for how to record your own observations, and a simple format for recording them.