by Kenzie Kahale-Alexander & Dustin Palos
Papeʻete, Tahiti to Honolulu, Hawaiʻi
As our time in Tahiti comes to a close, we reflect not only on the connections we’ve made during our time but also the connections we’ve held historically in ‘Ainamoana, specifically of the efforts of King Kalākaua to form the Polynesian Confederacy. With the efforts of the past and the connections of our present, we should consider the many possibilities of what the future holds for ʻAinamoana.
In 1887, Henry F. Poor, wrote in his journal:
“It gives me pleasure to announce also to you that in further token of friendship, my Sovereign takes this occasion to confer upon you the Grand Cross of His Royal Order of the Star of Oceania, an order officially instituted to decorate the Kings and Chiefs of Polynesia and those who may in any way contribute to the welfare and advancement of Polynesian communities.”1
Poor was secretary to John E. Bush, the former Minister of Foreign Affairs. As the newly appointed Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary, Bush was entrusted by King Kalākaua to lead a novel endeavor. In 1887, Bush and Poor began their efforts in realizing the King’s vision of a united Polynesia, starting with Sāmoa. Poor goes on to write of King Kalākaua’s intent to aid and assist the other islands of Polynesia and, if possible, form a confederacy. Negotiations would go on for weeks in Sāmoa, starting at the beginning of January, leading to the official signing of the political confederation on February 17, 1887.
Bush wrote in the journal:
“With His Majesty Kalākaua, and I, on the part of my Sovereign, give this solemn pledge that He will accept the said offer and will enter into the said political confederation and will uphold and maintain the rights and independence of such confederation now and forever.” With this swift successful alliance, Bush prepared to continue his efforts in Tonga; however, they would never reach Tonga.2
In July of the same year, an armed militia would force King Kalākaua, under threat of bayonets, to sign a new constitution, relinquishing the full power of the constitutional monarchy. The Polynesian Confederacy came to a crashing halt as imperial forces swept through the Pacific. It is through learning about our historical connections and diplomacy that we can expand our own understanding of the connections of ʻĀinamoana, both in the past and the future.3
The newly forged pilina that we developed during our huakaʻi to the communities of Tahiti ʻIki, Tahiti Nui, Raiatea, and Moʻorea allows future kanaka to have the opportunity this experience these special wahi. In Tautira, we were greeted and treated to a feast celebrating the return of Hawaiians and continuing to share and perpetuate the voyaging between Hawaiʻi and Tahiti ʻIki. Our travel on a bus with community members Lovaina Rochette and ʻohana, students, and other ʻohana from Papeete and Faʻaʻa shared mele, moʻolelo and discussions on similar traditions, inoa, plants, and other natural features of our honua. During our first full day, we got to experience communities that only access the rest of the island were exclusively by boat. Correlations of place names, plants, and common words were evident during after being immersed with the Tahitians. The genealogies of our ancestors are traced and can be felt when traversing through the fenua. The perpetuation and the legacy of King Kalākaua and a Pan-Polynesian Confederacy is a common theme heard throughout the Tahitian communities, seeking to understand and connect our rich relationships and genealogical ties that Pacific Islanders share, especially the migration of Akua and kanaka to Hawaiʻi.
This international study abroad program has proven that the strong relationships between the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi and Tahiti can still be physically seen by supporting historical documents that scholars, dignitaries, and kanaka maoli that choose to stay in the archipelago that share parallel lifestyles of our kupuna once lived. Wahi pana remained in the beautiful pae ʻāina of Tahiti. Diplomatic, cultural, and economic relationships can be reconnected, and the success of programs like Hawaii Youth Aboard can continue to build capacity, inspiration, and a portal between Tahiti and Hawaiʻi. As the program continues, students we be visiting Japan during the spring of 2025 and the Pacific Northwest in the summer of 2026, revisiting locations that our ancestors once traversed. One day, our Lahui will have future opportunities to traverse the many countries that our moʻi, scholars, and ancestors developed and shared our moʻolelo, mele, oli, traditions, customs, and securing a united Moananuiakeā and ʻĀina Moana on the Kaimiloa. In the future, these experiences and relationships will help us navigate and raise more awareness of our ʻohana in the vast Pacific, continuing to foster and draw from skills and programs that will help secure a more independent and sustainable ʻĀina Moana.
“But just as I have said, there is but one alternative left us for saving our country, and that to have Hawaiian youths educated abroad.” – JOSEPH NAWAHĪ, APRIL 1891
Marūrū, E Ola Nā Poʻe Moananuiakeā!
Highlights from Today
- Poor, Henry F. Journal of the Hawaiian Embassy to Samoa, Dec 26, 1886 – May 24, 1887. Honolulu, Hawaii: Bishop Museum Library & Archives. ↩︎
- Cook, Kealani. Return to Kahiki: Native Hawaiians in Oceania. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2018. ↩︎
- Gonschor, Lorenz. A Power in the World : The Hawaiian Kingdom in Oceania. Honolulu, Hawaii: University of Hawaiʻi Press, 2019. ↩︎