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 How the Child’s Mind Develops

Cognitive Development – how we learn to think, perceive, remember,

talk, reason and learn – is a central topic in the field of psychology. In
this highly readable book, David Cohen discusses the key theories,
research and controversies that have shaped and informed our
knowledge of how the child’s mind develops. He shows how the
questions and issues that have intrigued psychologists over the past
hundred years or so relate to the child growing up in the twenty-first
century.
This book is for everyone who lives with, works with or studies
children. Issues such as learning to read and write, performance in the
classroom, and measuring intelligence and ability are covered, as are
child crime and the development of morality. The effects on cognitive
development of social change and increased exposure to television and
computers are also discussed.
How the Child’s Mind Develops provides an integrated and thought-
provoking account of the central issues in cognitive development. It
will provide the professional, parent and student with an invaluable
introduction to the development of the mind.

David Cohen is a psychologist, writer and film-maker. He is the chief

executive of Psychology News.
How the Child’s
Mind Develops

David Cohen
 First published 2002
by Routledge
27 Church Rd, Hove, E Sussex, BN3 2FA
http://www.psypress.co.uk
Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada
by Taylor & Francis Inc
29 West 35th Street, New York, NY 10001
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group
This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2005.
“To purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledge’s
collection of thousands of eBooks please go to www.eBookstore.tandf.co.uk.”
© 2002 David Cohen
David Cohen has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and
Patent Act 1988 to be identified as the author of this work.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or
reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical,
or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including
photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or
retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Cohen, David, 1946–
How the child’s mind develops / David Cohen.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0–415–21653–2 – ISBN 0–415–21654–0 (pbk.)
1. Cognition in children. 2. Cognition in infants. 3. Cognition in
adolescence.
I. Title
BF723.C5 C6363 2001
155.4′13–dc21 2001034976

ISBN 0-203-99399-3 Master e-book ISBN

ISBN 0–415–21653–2 (hbk)

ISBN 0–415–21654–0 (pbk)
 Contents

List of illustrations vii

Introduction 1
1 The developing brain 9
2 The logical child: Piaget’s theory of cognitive
development 31
3 Egocentric or social animals? The work of Lev Vygotsky 57
4 The development of a moral sense 73
5 Other people and other minds 87
6 The development of memory 109
7 Measuring children’s cognitive development 129
8 Nature or nurture? 149
9 Cognitive development in the classroom: Reading,
writing and arithmetic 167
10 Television, toys and the child as consumer 183

References 193
Index 203
 Illustrations

Psychologists have to be inventive when thinking of ways

to study infants: in Gibson’s (1964) cleverly designed visual
cliff experiment, babies between 6.5 months and 12
months of age were reluctant to crawl over the ‘cliff edge’,
suggesting they perceived the drop. 11
The lobes of the brain. 12

A brain cell or neuron: electrochemical ‘messages’ are

received by the dendrites and transmitted along the axon
from where they are passed on to surrounding neurones. 13
Measuring brain activity. MRI scanning creates ‘slices’ of
the working brain. These scans are from top of the head
(top left) to the jaw-line (lower right). 18
Recognising yourself in the mirror: a developmental
landmark. 20

In Agra, India in 1957 a hunter chasing a pack of wolves

captured this ‘wolf boy’ running on all fours with the pack.
The boy was identified as ‘Pabsuram’, now 6 years of age
and taken from his family by wolves when he was only 18
months of age. During the years Pabsuram had been with
the wolves he had developed the animal habits of a wolf,

vii
ILLUSTRATIONS

was unable to stand erect, emitted wolf-like cries and was

unable to speak. Exposure to language enabled him to
learn a few words. 23
Jean Piaget’s theories still play a central role in the study of
cognitive development. 32
Piaget’s four stages of cognitive development. 37
Ball disappears at location A, but baby searches at location B. 41
The three mountains task. Piaget found that 4- to 6-year-
olds cannot imagine what a view is like from anyone else’s
point of view or from anywhere else. 43
The two policemen version of Hughes’ experiment.
Children as young as 3 could hide the doll in the one
square where the policemen could not see it – c. 50
Lev Vygotsky (1896 –1934) emphasised that cognitive
development depends very largely on social factors. 58
Play has always been an important factor in development. 61
Children use inner speech to help steer themselves through
unfamiliar tasks. 65

The Zone of Proximal Development: peers, older siblings,

parents or teachers can help children to perform tasks they
could not achieve alone. 68
Siblings teach each other a great deal. 71
Traditionally English law claimed that children under the
age of 10 were incapable of knowing the difference
between right and wrong. 74

Bullying or tickling? 77

Does increased exposure to social interaction at younger

ages make children more psychologically sophisticated? 88
Meltzoff and Moore (1977) showed that newborns can
imitate tongue protrusion, mouth opening and lip pursing
movements. 93

viii
 ILLUSTRATIONS

The Baddeley and Hitch (1997) model of working memory. 112

For most of us, our earliest memory is of an event that
happened when we were 3 years old. 114
Carolyn Rovee-Collier uses rate of kicking in response to
stimuli to study memory in babies. 119
Conventional intelligence tests are confined to the
classroom and do not measure the bargaining and
economic skills these children possess. 136
Gardner’s seven intelligences. 146
Drawings by 5-year-old Nadia who is autistic (left) and an
average 6-and-a-half-year-old (right). 147
Twins who have grown up separately are an important
source of data in the nature v. nurture debate. 151
We will spend 15,000 hours in the classroom before the
age of 16. 168
Does using rhyme help us learn to read? 174
Learning to count. The Oksapmin of New Guinea use body
locations to represent numbers. 177
The media child is not just a passive recipient of information,
a cognitive couch potato. 184
The average American child spends over twenty hours a
week watching television. 185

ix
to Aaron Cohen
 Introduction

Most psychologists, when they think of thinking, speak of ‘cognition’

thanks to the seventeenth-century French philosopher, René Descartes.
Contemplating his wood burning stove, Descartes came up with one
of the sharpest slogans of all time.
cogito ergo sum
Latin for: I think therefore I am.
Cogito – hence cognition, cognitive, cogitate, all words that mean
thinking or thought.
Elegant as Descartes’ formula was, it makes as much sense if you run
it backwards:
I am, therefore, I think.

Human beings cannot help thinking. You may be thinking rubbish, you
may be thinking about nothing more than the possibility of Kansas City
bidding for the next Olympics but, even so, your brain isn’t totally
empty.
No one is truly an airhead unless they’re brain-dead.
I don’t think of myself as a thinking sort of person. Quite. But you’re
still thinking. Of something. If you weren’t, you wouldn’t just be brain-
dead but clinically, comprehensively, in the ground six foot under, dead
or in a coma.
I am, therefore, I think.

1
HOW THE CHILD’S MIND DEVELOPS

The following exercise may help convince sceptics

For the next 3 minutes, jot down all the thoughts that come into your
mind. What you are doing is introspecting. You could call this free
association because there’ll be some links or associations between your
various thoughts.
If you had no thoughts at all, worry.
Our minds, when we’re awake, are nearly always busy. Thoughts
flow along. The nineteenth-century American psychologist William
James compared consciousness to a river and coined the famous phrase
‘stream of consciousness’.
To empty your mind, you have to meditate. This is so alien to our
normal manner of thinking that individuals who want to meditate have
to learn special exercises. Many religions like Buddhism offer rigorous
training in meditation.
So try a second exercise – and this one is much harder.

Imagine you’re a baby

Put yourself inside the mind of a baby, an 8-month-old toddler who is

crawling around his playpen. What do objects look like if you’re
observing them from a different height? How can you think of objects
when you have no words for them because you haven’t yet learned
how to speak?
You’ve now grown up very fast and are 3 years old. You’re going
to kindergarten and you’re pretending to be an astronaut or a doctor.
Trying to imagine this is easier because you can use language but how
do the world, your parents, other children look?

By comparison, trying to think like a 9-year-old or a teenager is much

easier. Most of us have reasonable memories of significant events that
have taken place after we’re 8 years old. Hundreds of books and films
depend on authors evoking their childhood. Many people have more
fragmented memories of earlier events in their lives; I remember flying
from Israel to Amsterdam and being offered chicken to eat on the
plane.
But hardly anyone remembers anything of their life as a baby. A
study in 1896 showed that most people’s first memories were of an
isolated event when they were three (Henri and Binet 1896). In films

2
 INTRODUCTION

or ads when babies act sophisticated and speak, it’s funny because it’s
impossible and outlandish. We know babies can’t speak and can’t
possibly have the kind of thoughts they express in some TV ads or in
the John Travolta movie Look Who’s Talking. We’re projecting an adult
mind on to that of a baby or a toddler.
How do we get from helpless baby to knowing, ironic teenager?
In this book I look at different theories and aspects of cognitive
development. Psychologists have tried to understand the stages by
which children’s thinking develops; some have also tried to understand
the fundamental causes of development and have argued over whether
our intelligence is a matter of nature or nurture.
Is cognition very much a matter of learning and environment or is
it a matter of heredity? Is your fate sealed before you’re born by your
DNA and your genes or does everything depend on how you’re brought
up and the environment you develop in? Nature theories – also known
as innatist, biological or the genetic position – claim heredity is far
more important than environment. Nurture theories claim the
opposite. The family environment, social class, individual experiences,
the rewards and punishments a child experiences, determine her or
his development. As we shall see, after a century of controversy it is
possible to get closer than ever before to useful answers.

The twenty-first-century child

My aims in this book are, first, to examine the key research in cognitive
development in a way that is accessible to those who love and live and
work with children – parents, teachers, doctors, nurses, social workers,
child carers and students of developmental psychology. Many parents
want to understand the latest ideas in cognitive development – and
many professionals need to in order to be effective. Second, I want to
suggest that child psychology should take into account important
changes in the way children grow up, changes that have an impact on
their cognitive development. Children do not develop in a vacuum or
the psychology lab. A leading child psychologist Tom Bower (1989)
wrote of the changes he had seen in ‘the theory of the baby’. In 1971,
when he became a father, babies were seen as passive. In Scotland he
couldn’t buy slings or strollers that would allow a baby to sit up and
watch what was going on. There were few audio-visual toys – certainly
not interactive infant mobiles which, even if they don’t yet exist, will

3
HOW THE CHILD’S MIND DEVELOPS

soon allow an infant to have an e-mail address from birth. Bower wrote
‘The market expected babies to lie back on their backs . . . contem-
plating a distant patch of ceiling or an even more distant patch of sky.’
Today there’s a huge industry catering for the active baby who can
‘sit up in a well designed chair, able to inspect what is going on, able
to look at a variety of mobiles and other toys.’ (1989, p. 154).
We assume children are growing up quicker than ever before. Once
10-year-olds were really children. Now by that age they are often well
on the way to putting aside childish things. They read fanzines; pre-
teen magazines carry articles on relationships and sex; television
programmes expose children not just to more violence but also to more
issues than ever before.
Cognitive development is also becoming politically relevant. In
Britain, the government has committed itself to testing children five
times from the day they enter school to when they take exams: at 5 for
a baseline assessment, at 7, at 11, at 12 and at 14. The European
Community has decreed that children all over Europe are to be taught
– and tested on – what being a citizen of Europe means from the age
of 6.
The classic texts in child psychology – especially those of the great
Swiss psychologist, Jean Piaget (1896–1980) – come from a time when
education was more formal, when there was less competition, when
children’s TV didn’t exist, when there was no Internet and when no
commercial genius had dreamed of the idea of marketing to children
and using focus groups of 6-year-old consumers. Even anodyne heroes
like Babar and Winnie the Pooh appeared later (at least as major
television and radio personalities) than Piaget’s key books. The effect
of exposure to the media on children’s intellectual development is only
now starting to infiltrate psychology. Students and parents need to be
aware of these developments – and some of the relevant experimental
work is hard to get hold of because it has been commissioned by
advertising agencies. Glen Smith, director of the Children’s Research
Unit in London, a non-profit-making organisation that regularly studies
children’s attitudes, told me for an article I wrote on how children
understand advertising, that it was not possible for some data to be
published because his clients felt they needed to keep it confidential
for commercial reasons.
As important as the cascades or deluges of information are changes
in the structure of the family. Fathers are becoming more involved with

4
 INTRODUCTION

children than ever before. A Prime Minister who admitted to changing

the nappies – Tony Blair’s proud boast – in the 1950s and even 1960s
would have been seen as very peculiar. In 2000, on the other hand,
Tony Blair insisted after the birth of his son Leo that he as well as his
wife was having sleepless nights because the baby had to be looked
after. Many children have to cope with divorce and with living in step-
families which can make them more emotionally agile, and fragile,
than ever before. It is not unusual for a 5-year-old child to be in a family
that includes a new baby by her blood mother and a new man, an older
sibling who was born to her blood parents and step siblings whose blood
parents are her mother’s new partner and his ex-wife. The Oedipus
Complex for stepfamilies is an interesting subject. Inevitably, such
social changes affect both the emotional and intellectual develop-
ment of children. Cutting and Dunn (1999) report a study on 128 south
London children which supports the idea that class and family
experiences influence the way children develop an understanding of
emotional language.
Child psychology cannot afford to ignore these changes if we are
to understand the developmental pattern. Further, in the West, we
should be sensitive to issues like poverty. It has been estimated that
5 million children die of malnutrition every year; millions more survive
but suffer profound intellectual and emotional consequences. All our
theories tend to be about how well-fed children develop but develop-
mental psychologists in the West pay too little attention at present to
poverty and malnutrition making – or breaking – the mind of a child.
I am writing at a time when some psychologists are questioning
what is perhaps the most basic assumption underlying cognitive
development – that children grow through a series of stages which
can be meticulously identified. In his book Emerging Minds, the
American psychologist Siegler (1996) claimed that we should stop
seeing child development as a series of steps the infant climbs up and
see it more in terms of overlapping waves. Siegler’s ideas are in the
process of generating considerable work and they do conflict with
the classic theories of Piaget and his followers. The debate is one to
return to at various points in the book.
Many of the arguments in this book cannot be conclusive because
there are many enduring mysteries about cognitive development. What
we don’t know can be as interesting as what we do know – and what
we don’t know changes all the time in a swiftly changing world.

5
HOW THE CHILD’S MIND DEVELOPS

Contents
You can’t understand cognitive development without understanding
the brain. Chapter 1 gives a basic introduction to the cortex and how
it develops from before birth to the teens. It covers the techniques
used to study the brain and the methods psychologists resort to when
studying babies who can’t speak a word. The chapter also looks at the
idea that the brain is a computer.
Chapter 2 looks at the work of Jean Piaget, the most influential child
psychologist of the twentieth century, and argues he was extremely
brilliant but had some curious emphases.
Chapter 3 looks at other theories of child development, including
those of the Russian psychologist Lev Vygotsky who had the mis-
fortune to upset Stalin. Vygotsky argued parents and teachers had an
important part to play in helping children learn.
Chapter 4 looks at the question of moral development. How do
children develop ideas of what is right and what is wrong and is that
related to their cognitive development? The law in Britain, America
and most European countries often assumes that children under 10
cannot tell right from wrong. Is that any longer realistic?
Chapter 5 looks at how children think about feelings, beliefs and
other people. It is now clear that how children develop what phil-
osophers call ‘theories of other minds’ is a crucial aspect of cognitive
development – and some of the most persuasive evidence that children
are growing up faster comes from these studies. If children are
becoming more aware and more psychologically mature, in the West
at least, should we not be trying to understand why?
Chapter 6 looks at the development of memory, an area which has
seen psychologists at their most inventive. How can you tell whether
a 3-month-old baby remembers anything since he or she can’t yet
speak?
Chapter 7 looks at intelligence testing and other ways of measuring
cognitive development. IQ tests at best only measure a small part
of it.
Chapter 8 looks at the nurture and nature debate in more detail. It
examines not just the traditional area of intelligence but also that of
personality. It suggests that we are on the way to finding a resolution
of it.
Chapter 9 looks at issues of cognitive development in the classroom.
It covers recent work on how children learn basic skills like reading

6
 INTRODUCTION

and writing. Recently a bitter controversy has erupted between psychol-

ogists who believe that ability to produce and recognise rhymes is the
best predictor of reading ability and those who differ. The chapter also
deals with how we learn arithmetic and learning skills.
Chapter 10 looks at the influence of television and computers on the
way children’s thought develops – and raises the question of whether
children seem to be getting smarter – and even perhaps getting smarter
because they watch more television and talk about it.
Many chapters carry exercises in introspection and self-observation
as well as what I call Parental Exercises. The great behaviourist John
B. Watson made all his students in the 1920s fill out a Balance Sheet
of the Self because he argued that psychologists could not practise on
other people till they understood their own strengths and weaknesses.
That is evidently true for psychologists and for all those who deal
professionally with children. Parents aren’t going to lose either if they
are as aware as they can be of their own strengths and weaknesses.

7
 1
The developing brain

Introduction
Agatha Christie’s detective Hercule Poirot boasted his superior brain
let him solve murders that baffled Scotland Yard, so he was always
careful to keep his little grey cells warm. Cold might damage
brainpower. Marginally less eccentric, P.G.Wodehouse’s clever butler
Jeeves believed eating fish kept his brain at peak power.
Outside fiction, it’s proved more difficult to pin-point just what it
is about a person’s brain that gives them remarkable gifts. Do brainy
people have a larger brain? Or a different balance of chemicals in the
brain? Pathologists have examined the brains of Einstein and Mozart.
Neither was radically unusual. Given the astonishing work they
produced – Einstein’s theory of relativity and Mozart’s wondrous music
– their brains seemed to be surprisingly like ordinary people’s.
Ironically, the more we know about the brain, the more we realise
how little we know about how our ability to think develops. The
questions have become even more complex as some scientists like
Tooby and Cosmides (1998) argue that brain structures have possibly
changed more in the last million years than conventional accounts
allow. Evolution, they say, has affected the brain; human beings have
not just developed through ‘culture’. The brain remains an organ
wrapped in awesome mysteries. The way the child’s mind develops
is, obviously, rooted in how the brain itself develops, so it is useful to
have an understanding of how the brain works.

9
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
arrived at a rise looking toward kiekiena. A hiki o Palila i laila
the sea. This rise is Komoikeanu. nana aku la i na kanaka o kai o
When Palila arrived at this rise Paa e piha ana, manao iho la o
he looked down and saw two Palila, he kaua no paha kela i
great armies gathered at Paa. kuu makuakane ia Kaluaopalena,
Palila knew by the action of the huli aku la keia hele mauka o
men that a battle was about to Hanapepe he nahelehele me ka
be fought and against his father laau loloa ko keia wahi. Ma keia
Kaluaopalena. He therefore hele ana a Palila, e waiho aku
turned and proceeded along the ana ia i ka laau palau ana ia
upper part of Hanapepe through Huliamahi, pau ka laau i ka hina,
the brush and tall trees. When o ia hele o ka hina o ka laau a
Palila got into the forest he loaa ke kaua, pau loa na kanaka
swung his club, Huliamahi, i ka make o kekahi aoao, koe ko
knocking down the trees. By Kaluaopalena aoao. Aka, o ka
reason of the falling of the trees poe i lohe i ka olelo kukala a
one on top of another, they kept Hina no ka hiki mai o Palila, ua
on falling until the trees standing makau lakou, nolaila, hoouna ke
around one of the armies were ’lii o Namakaokalani i na elele, e
also knocked down, destroying a olelo aku ia Kaluaopalena e pau
large portion thereof, leaving ke kaua, a e noho like me ke
Kaluaopalena’s intact. Those who kuikahi.
heard Hina announce the coming
of Palila were all afraid upon
seeing the forest mowed down,
therefore Namakaokalani
immediately sent his messengers
to ask Kaluaopalena to call off
the battle and to make peace.

When Kaluaopalena heard the A lohe o Kaluaopalena i keia mau

message, he refused to call the olelo a na elele, hoole aku: “Aole
battle off, saying: “I will not call e pau ke kaua a lanakila au, no
the battle off until I am ka mea, o ka’u hana ke kaua a
victorious, for I have laid awake lolo nui ke poo, nolaila, o ka la
nights until my head was made keia puni o Kauai nei ia’u.” O ke
heavy planning for this battle. I kumu o keia olelo a
know that I will conquer the Kaluaopalena pela, no kona lohe
whole of Kauai this day.” The ana ia Palila, e iho mai ana e
reason why Kaluaopalena said halawai me ia, a o ke kumu no
this was because he had heard hoi ia i makau ai kekahi aoao.
that Palila was coming to meet Ma kahi a Palila i uhau ai i ka
him, and it was also this which laau palu ana, aohe laau ulu,
caused the other side to sue for aohe nahelehele, a hiki i keia la.
peace. On whichever side Palila
swung his club no trees or
shrubs remained standing, and
none grow to this day.

While Palila was on his way to Ia Palila e iho mai ana e halawai
meet Kaluaopalena, me Kaluaopalena, hele mai o
Namakaokalani the warrior from Namakaokalani, he koa ia no
Moloaa, with his war club, came Moloaa, e halawai me
to meet Kaluaopalena. This war Kaluaopalena, me kana laau
club was so large that it required palau, elua kanaha kanaka nana
eighty men to carry it, forty at e amo, hookahi mamua, hookahi
one end and forty at the other. mahope o ka laau ma waena. A
When Namakaokalani arrived in hiki o Namakaokalani i mua o
the presence of Kaluaopalena, Kaluaopalena, lalau iho la i kana
he stood up his war club, called laau palau, o Kawelowai ka inoa,
Kawalowai, in the presence of a kukulu ae la i mua o ka
the people; but Kaluaopalena lehulehu, aole nae he kahea mai
would not call him to come on o Kaluaopalena, nolaila, hilahila
his side; 3 he was so ashamed o Namakaokalani a hoi aku la i
that he thereupon returned to Moloaa. Ku mai o
Moloaa. After Namakaokalani Lupeakawaiowainiha, he koa ia,
came Lupeakawaiowainiha, ina e mimi, aohe koe aina i ka
another great warrior. It is said lilo i ka wai, me kana laau palau,
that every time he urinated the o Kalalea ka inoa, ekolu kanaka
land would be flooded. He, too, nana e amo. A hiki i mua o
came with his war club, called Kaluaopalena, lalau iho la i ka
Kalalea. This war club was so laau a oniu ae la i luna ke alo,
large that it required one kaa ka laau i ke poo, i ka auwae,
hundred and twenty men to uwa ka aha i ke akamai, aole
carry it. When he arrived in the nae i kahea [141]aku o
presence of Kaluaopalena, he Kaluaopalena, nolaila, hilahila a
took his war club and twirled it hoi aku la i Hanalei. No ka mea,
over his head and then down ua kapu loa ka leo o
under his chin, causing the Kaluaopalena a noa ia Palila, e
people to shout with admiration like me ka olelo a Hina.
at his cleverness; but
Kaluaopalena would not call him
and he [140]was so ashamed that
he went home to Hanalei.
Kaluaopalena, according to the
instructions from Hina was
patiently waiting for Palila and
consequently did not utter a
word when the two warriors
stood before him.

After these two warriors came Mahope o laua, hiki mai o Palila
Palila. While he was yet a mile hookahi mile paha ke kaawale
distant from Kaluaopalena, Palila ma waena o Palila a me
swung his war club, Huliamahi, Kaluaopalena, e hili akau mai
causing all the trees to fall with ana o Palila i kana laau palau, ia
the exception of one lehua tree, Huliamahi, pau loa na laau i ka
it being the supernatural body of hina, a koe ke kumu lehua nui, o
Palila himself. The trees in falling ke kino lehua ia o Palila. Ua pau
killed many. None escaped loa na kanaka i ka luku ia e na
except Kaluaopalena’s people, laau ma ka hina ana, aohe
who were standing away from kanaka pakele o ko Kaluaopalena
the trees. Those who ran and hid poe, o ka poe ma kahi laau ole
in the woods were killed. kai pakele, o ka poe pee a holo
aku i loko o na laau, ua make.

When Palila arrived in the A hiki o Palila i mua o

presence of Kaluaopalena, Kaluaopalena, hele mai la o
Kaluaopalena came crawling to Kaluaopalena me ke kokolo a
Palila, and when near him fell mua o Palila, moe iho la i lalo ke
flat, face down, and called out: alo, a kahea ae la: “E Kalani e!
“Ye heavenly offspring, hold out hou ia ko laau.” Ninau mai o
your club.” Palila inquired: Palila: “I hea au, i uka, i kai, i
“Where shall it be? Toward the nae, i lalo?” I aku o
uplands, toward the lowlands, to Kaluaopalena: “I ka ihu o ka
the east or downward?” puaa a me ka ia ula oe.” Hou iho
Kaluaopalena answered: “At the ana o Palila i ka laau palau ana,
killing of the pig and the red ia Huliamahi, i lalo, a koe ka
fish.” Palila then pushed his war welau i luna, oia kela aina o
club, Huliamahi, downward until Waihohonu, nolaila, kona nakele
only the point of it remained a hiki i keia la, a nolaila kona
above ground. That was the land hohonu. O na kanaka a pau loa,
of Waihohonu, therefore its miry pau i ka moe i lalo, aohe kanaka
condition to this day and its a ala ae i luna, ala no make.
deep depression. At this all the
people fell down, not one daring
to remain standing for fear of
death.

It was a law with Palila that A he kanawai hoi ko Palila, o ka

whenever he laughed the kapu a-ka, aia a a-ka o Palila, alaila
would end; people could then noa, walaau, ku a hele, holoholo,
stand up, speak, or run about. eia nae, aole lakou i ike ia
The people did not, however, kanawai, nolaila, ua pilihua loa
know this, so they remained lakou. Ia lakou e moe ana, hiki
lying down. While they were all mai la o Hina a ku i luna o Alea,
in this position Hina arrived and o Maunakilika i keia wa me ke
she stood on a little rise called kapa o Palila, o Hakaula ka inoa,
Alea [known as Maunakilika at me ka malo o Palila, o Ikuwa ka
the present time], with the robe inoa. Wehe ae la o Hina i kona
of Palila, called Hakaula and the kapa a olohelohe, kaa mai la
malo of Palila called Ikuwa. Hina maluna o na kanaka, ma keia
then uncovered herself to kaa ana o Hina, ua a-ka o Palila,
nakedness, and rolled over the o ke kumu o ka aka ana, no ka
backs of the people, which leholeho o ka mai o Hina, oia o
caused Palila to laugh and Lehokukuwau. Noa ae la ke
released the kapu, when they all kanawai o Palila, ala ae la na
arose. The reason of this kanaka a pau i luna, hele mai la
laughter was her own condition, o Hina, a ka mai a Palila, kahe, a
called Lehokukuwau. 4 She then paa i ka oloa, a hoi aku la i uka o
approached Palila, circumcised 5 Alanapo.
and bound him with oloa kapa, 6
after which they returned up to
Alanapo.

After Palila had been in Alanapo A hala ke anahulu o ka noho ana

more than ten days the desire to o Palila i loko o Alanapo, ikaika
go and fight the chiefs of other loa kona manao e hele e hakaka,
lands and the demi-gods of the e kaua me na kupu, a me na ’lii.
deep began to grow in him until Iaia e noho ana i loko o Alanapo,
at last he decided to go and ua hiki aku ia ia ka halialia o
meet them. Before he left Kamaikaahui, he mano kanaka ia
Alanapo he had a premonition of no Maui.
meeting Kamaikaahui, a human
shark which was living in Maui.
Kamaikaahui at this time was No Kamaikaahui: O Muolea ma
living at Muolea, Hana, Maui. He Hana, i Maui ka aina o
had come through three Kamaikaahui i noho ai; ekolu ona
different forms: first, that of a kino, o ka mua ka iole, o ka lua
rat; second, a bunch of bananas; ka maia, o ke kolu ka mano. He
and third, that of a shark. It was iole ke kino mua i ka wa uuku, a
when he was very small that he pii i luna o ka maia me ke kino
had the form of a rat, but on iole, lilo he ahui maia. I ka wa o
climbing a banana tree he ka mea maia i kii aku ai i ka
changed into a bunch of maia, lalau iho la i na eka o luna
bananas. After a while when the a lawe mai la, koe o lalo iho. Ia
owner of the patch of bananas wa lilo ka waha ma ke kua a me
came to pick the bunch he took na niho, a lilo ae la he kino
the top hands only, leaving the kanaka maoli, ma ke kua nae na
lower ones, when it changed into niho mano, o kana hana o ka ai i
a human being having a shark’s ke kanaka.
mouth and teeth in the back
below the neck, and it thereupon
began to have a desire for
human flesh.

Kamaikaahui’s occupation was O ka Kamaikaahui hana, o ka

that of a farmer, and to suit his mahiai ai i ke alanui i na la a pau
taste he had his fields near the loa. Ia ia e mahiai ana, iho mai
public highway. While at his work la ka poe auau kai, a poe lawaia
he could see the people on their hooluuluu. Ninau aku la o
way sea bathing or on their way Kamaikaahui: [143]“Heaha ka
to fish. As people passed down oukou auau kai?” “He lele kawa.”
he would ask: “What [142]kind of “E pau wawae auanei.” A iho
bathing are you going to have?” lakou la, mahope keia a loko o
“We are going to leap from the ke kai, ai mai la ma na wawae a
rocks.” He would then say: “Your pau, pela kai nei hana mau ana,
feet will be bitten.” After the ina he hooluuluu ka lawaia, pau
people had passed on their way poo ia ia nei.
to the sea, he would then follow
on behind and jump into the sea
and begin to bite off the feet of
the bathers. This was carried on
every time the people went
bathing and they never once
suspected him. If the people
were on their way to dive for fish
their heads would be bitten off
and eaten by Kamaikaahui.

It was his custom to always have He mea mau i keia kanaka ka

a piece of kapa wrapped around paa mau ana o kona kihei i na la
his back and he never went a pau loa, aole e hemo iki, no ka
without it, because it was to huna i ka waha ma ke kua, o ike
cover up the mouth at his back, ia. Nolaila, he la koele na ko
for he did not wish to have it Maui alii, o Kamaikaahui kekahi i
seen. One day during one of the laila, ua uluhua na mea a pau
king’s working days at which loa i ka paa mau o ke kihei o
Kamaikaahui was present, with Kamaikaahui, nolaila, olelo ia e
the piece of kapa on his back, wehe ke kapa o na mea a pau
the people having seen him thus loa. Wehe na mea a pau loa i ko
covered at all times made up lakou kapa, o Kamaikaahui, holo
their mind to see why his back aku la ia me ke alualu ia e na
was always covered. A general kanaka a lele i loko o ke kai,
order was therefore issued in haalele i kona kapa, a lilo aku la i
which everybody was requested mano. O ka aina ana i wehe ai a
to uncover their back. This was haalele i ke kapa, a lele ai i loko
followed by everybody except o ke kai, o Kauhalahala ka inoa o
Kamaikaahui. When he was ia aina a hiki i keia la, no kona
requested to uncover his back he
at once attempted to escape and hala wale ana i ko na kanaka
ran off, threw down his clothes lima.
and jumped into the sea where
he turned into a shark. The place
where he left his clothes is to
this day known as Kauhalahala,
given to it because he
successfully escaped from the
hands of the people.

After transforming himself into a A ma ke kino mano ia i hele mai

shark he came to Waipahu in ai a noho i Waipahu ma Waikele i
Waikele, Oahu, where he Ewa. A noho o Kamaikaahui i
remained. As soon as he was laila, e like me kana hana i Maui,
settled in the place he again pela no i Ewa, ina e hakaka a
followed the same practice that kaa ka hoapaio malalo, nanahu
he did in Maui. Every time he got iho la no na niho ma ke kua, a
his opponent under him his moku. Pela no kana hana mau
mouth at the back would bite ana, a lilo iho la ia i mea makau
and eat the man. This was done ia na Ewa, a noho iho la ia he ’lii
so often that the people of Ewa maoli maluna o na kanaka.
began to get afraid of him, and
he lived as a king over them.

On the day that Palila decided to No Palila: Lalau iho la o Palila i

leave home, he took up his war kana laau palau ia Huliamahi, a
club, Huliamahi, and came out of ku iho la i luna o ke ahua o
Humuula and stood on the knoll Komoikeanu ma waho mai o
of Komoikeanu, swung his war Humuula, oniu i ka laau ana, ia
club, pointed it in front of him oniu ana a pahu, hue mai la ka
and let the club fly. As the club laau mamua, paa mai la o Palila
flew he hung on to one end of it ma ka elau, a ku ana i luna o
and he was carried by it until he Nualolo, i ka puu o ahi o
landed on the cliff of Nualolo on Kamaile. Nana keia o Kahiki, a
the top of the hill of Kamaile, the pau, huli nana ia Oahu nei, a
hill from which the fire sticks 7 paa ka manao ma Oahu nei, e
are thrown. As he stood on the pahu mai ana keia ia Huliamahi,
hill he first looked towards kau ana i ka lae o Kaena keia,
Kahiki, then towards Oahu; then ma Waianae.
making up his mind to come to
Oahu, he pushed his war club
ahead of him and again he was
carried by it until he landed on
the Kaena point at Waianae.

After leaving Kaena he came to Haalele keia ia Kaena, hele mai

Kalena, then on to Pohakea, la a Kalena, a Pohakea,
then to Maunauna, then to Maunauna, Kanehoa, a ke kula o
Kanehoa, then to the plain of Keahumoa, nana ia Ewa. Ku keia
Keahumoa and looking toward i laila nana i ke ku a ka ea o ka
Ewa. At this place he stood and lepo i na kanaka, e pahu aku ana
looked at the dust as it ascended keia i ka laau palau aia nei i kai o
into the sky caused by the Honouliuli, ku ka ea o ka lepo,
people who had gathered there; nu lalo o ka honua, me he olai
he then pushed his war club la, makau na kanaka holo a hiki i
toward Honouliuli. When the Waikele. A hiki o Palila i laila, e
people heard something roar like paapu ana na kanaka i ka nana
an earthquake they were afraid lealea a ke ’lii o Oahu nei, oia o
and they all ran to Waikele. Ahuapau, o kona hale noho, o
When Palila arrived at Waikele Kalaepohaku e pili la me
he saw the people gathered Wailuakio i Kapalama.
there to witness the athletic
games that were being given by
the king of Oahu, Ahuapau by
name. His palace was situated at
Kalaepohaku, close to Wailuakio
at Kapalama.

Ahuapau was a kapu chief and No Ahuapau: He ’lii kapu loa ia i

he was kept covered up away ka makani a me ka ua, he ’lii
from the wind and rain. On kapu i ka nana aku, a no kona
going out he was carried from kapu, ua paa i loko o ka manele
place to place inclosed in a a me ka puloulou, ke hele i waho
palanquin, so high [144]and o ke [145]alanui. Elua hoi ona
sacred was his rank. 8 He had mau kukini mama loa, o Iomea,
two very fast runners, called o Ioloa. Ina e iho ke ’lii ilalo o
Iomea and Ioloa. Every time the Waikele e lealea ai, alaila, komo i
king traveled to Waikele to ka manele, a pio ke kikiao
witness the games he would makani a hoolai, alaila amo, aole
climb into his palanquin and be e pa ke kikiao makani a komo i
covered up and would only ka hale, pela ke hele a ke hoi. A
venture out in this way, whether ua olelo hoi ua ’lii la i kana olelo,
on the way down or on the way ina o ke kanaka e holo ai, a e
home. This king had a certain make ai o Kamaikaahui, e lilo ia i
fear of Kamaikaahui and because alii nui no Oahu nei.
of this fear he had issued an
order, that whoever was able to
chase Kamaikaahui out of Oahu,
or was able to kill him, that he
would make that person the
chief ruler of Oahu.

When Palila arrived at the place O Palila hoi, mawaho ia o ka aha

he remained on the outside of e kalewa nei me kana olelo i
the crowd and said that if mua o ka lehulehu, “ina e ike o
Kamaikaahui would see him he Kamaikaahui ia ia, alaila holo.” A
would run away. When this was lohe ke ’lii i keia mau olelo a
carried to the king Palila was Palila, olelo mai ke ’lii: “Ina he
sent for and as he stood in the oiaio e holo o Kamaikaahui i keia
presence of the king, the king la ia oe, alaila nau e komo kuu
addressed him, saying: “If it is heiau kapu.” Mahope o keia olelo
true that Kamaikaahui will run ana, hoike o Palila ia
away from you this day, then Kamaikaahui, holo o
you will be the first one to enter Kamaikaahui i loko o ke kai, e
my sacred temple.” Soon after hoomoe aku ana o Palila i ka
this Palila made himself known laau palau, hoi hou i uka,
to Kamaikaahui. At sight of waihowale ke kino, ike ia ka
Palila, Kamaikaahui attempted to waha a me ka niho me ke kua, a
escape by running into the sea, make iho la.
but Palila pushed out his club,
forcing Kamaikaahui to come
back. He was then caught and
uncovered and the people saw
his mouth and sets of teeth at
his back; he was then killed.

Papakolea was a farmer and his O Papakolea, he kanaka mahiai

wife was Koiuiu; they lived at ia, o Koiuiu kana wahine, o Leleo
Leleo. It was promised him that ka aina, aia a oo ka ai ana,
when his crops were ripe that alaila, komo ka heiau o
the temple of Kanelaauli, at Kanelaauli ma Kahehuna, ma ke
Kahehuna, 9 just at the base of alo o Puowaina. I aku o
Punchbowl hill, would be opened Papakolea i ke ’lii, ia Ahuapau:
to the public. “E! ke keiki e puni ai ko aina,
hoomoe ia au kaikamahine.” Elua
When Papakolea saw Palila he kaikamahine a Ahuapau, o
said to Ahuapau, the king: “Say, Kaalamikioi, o Kalehuawai. I mai
here is the young man who will ke kahuna, o Kahikoluamea:
conquer the whole island for “Alia e hoomoe i ka wahine, he
you; give him your daughters to ’kua kela ma ka aoao o Mahinui,
wife.” Ahuapau had two ka makuahine, ua hanai kapu ia i
daughters, Kaalamikioi and loko o Alanapo e ke ’kua. Nolaila,
Kalehuawai. Upon hearing this aole i lilo i kanaka.” I aku o
the priest Kahikoluamea said: Ahuapau: “Pehea ka pono?” I
“Don’t give him your daughters aku o Kahikoluamea: “E
yet; let us wait a while. He is not hookomo i loko o ka manele, a e
quite human as he is partly amo au kukini me ka mama loa,
spirit, being so by the influence a komo i ka heiau, malaila e
of Mahinui, his mother. He has kapu ai a pau ka hana, a lilo i
been brought up under strict kanaka, alaila, pono.” Ia wa
kapus in the temple of Alanapo komo o Palila i ka manele, a amo
by the spirits and is therefore mai la na kukini a komo i loko o
not quite human.” At this Kanelaauli ma Kahehuna, me ka
Ahuapau asked: “What are we to pa ole o ka makani. A o ke ’lii hoi
do then?” Kahikoluamea replied: o Ahuapau, akahi no a hele ma
“Put him on the palanquin and ka wakae, a me ka lepo, akahi
let your runners carry him with hoi a pa ia e ka makani.
all haste into the temple, where
he shall be kept under a strict
kapu until we have worked over
him and have transformed him
into a perfect human being,
when everything will be well.”
Palila was then placed in the
palanquin and he was carried off
by the two runners into the
temple of Kanelaauli, at
Kahehuna, without allowing a
single breath of wind to strike
him. The king Ahuapau in the
meantime walked on the ground
for the first time and the wind
also for the first time blew on
him.
After Palila was carried into the A komo o Palila iloko o ka heiau
temple of Kanelaauli the priests o Kanelaauli, ninau mai na
inquired: “What is this?” The kahuna: “Heaha keia?” I aku na
runners answered: “It is a kukini: “He ’lii kapu no Alanapo i
kapued chief from Alanapo, Kauai; e kau ka pae humu o ka
Kauai. Let the railing of the heiau, a e hookani ka pahu me
temple be put up, let the drum ka puniu.” A ao ka po, hana iho
be beaten and the coconut la na kahuna ia Palila, kahe pono
rattlers rattle.” On the next day ia ka mai, a pau ia, noa iho la
the priests worked on Palila and kona kino a lilo iho la i kino
he was also properly kanaka maoli. Launa o Palila me
circumcised. He was then na wahine, na kaikamahine a
transformed into a perfect Ahuapau, alaila, olelo aku o
human being. After the Ahuapau ia Palila, e hele e
ceremonies Palila was allowed to kaapuni ia Oahu nei, ae mai o
live with his wives, the Palila.
daughters of Ahuapau. Soon
after this Ahuapau told Palila to
make a circuit of Oahu, to which
Palila consented.

But before starting out Palila Ninau aku o Palila: “Aohe kupu,
asked Ahuapau: “Are there any a alai o ke alanui a puni Oahu
lawless obstructions [146]along nei?” “Aole,” [147]pela mai o
the road surrounding Oahu?” Ahuapau; he manao huna ko
“None,” said Ahuapau. This was, Ahuapau ia Palila, e ake ana no e
however, a lie, as Ahuapau was make o Palila. Olelo aku o Palila:
even at this time determined to “Ae, i hele au, a i halawai me ke
have Palila killed. Palila then said kolohe, alaila, pepehi au a make,
to Ahuapau: “Yes, I am going on hoi mai au pepehi ia oe a me
my way and in case I meet some kou mau kanaka a pau loa.” Ma
one who will attempt to harm keia olelo a Palila, makau o
me, I will first kill him and then I Ahuapau, hai aku la ia Olomana,
will return and kill you and all aia i Kaelepulu i Koolau, he koa
your men.” At this Ahuapau was ia. I mai o Palila: “Ola oe ia’u, e
frightened and told of Olomana, huna oe, ina ua make.”
who was living at Kaelepulu in
Koolau and was a great warrior.
Palila then said: “I will not kill
you now; but had you kept it
from me you would have been
killed.”

Palila then climbed to the top of Pii aku la o Palila a luna o

Punchbowl hill and looked Puowaina, nana ma o a ma o,
around him. From this place he hele aku la a hiki i Nuuanu,
walked up to the Nuuanu pali, hoomoe i ka laau palau ana, paa
pushed his war club ahead of aku la o Palila mahope, holo aku
him, holding on to one end and la a hiki i Kaelepulu, ilaila o
flew to Kaelepulu, where he saw Olomana kahi i ku ai.
Olomana standing.

Olomana was a very tall man, he No Olomana: He kanaka loihi ia

being twelve 10 yards to the ke nana aku, he umikumamalua
shoulders, and thirteen in height. kahaku o ke kua, he
He was a very brave man and umikumamakolu o ke alo, he
was much feared. No chief or kanaka koa a me ka makau ia;
warrior dared face him. If he aole alii, aole koa aa aku ia ia,
stood on the windward side the lulu ka makani ia ia ke ku ma ka
other side would be a perfect hikina, malu no hoi ka la no kona
calm; his height also shaded the kiekie.
sun.

When Palila saw Olomana, he A ike o Palila ia Olomana, lele pu

jumped up with his war club, ae la o Palila i luna me ka laau
Huliamahi, and stood on the palau ana me Huliamahi, a kau i
shoulders of Olomana. Olomana ka poohiwi o Olomana. Huli ae la
then turned and said to Palila: o Olomana a olelo ae la ia Palila:
“Where are you from, you “Nohea oe e nei keiki hookano o
haughty youngster? No one has ka hele ana mai nei? Aole he
ever dared, before this day, to mea nana i pii ko’u poohiwi a
climb up my shoulders; and here hiki i keia la, o oe ae nei ka ka
you have done it.” Palila then mea nana e pii.” I aku o Palila:
answered: “I am Palila who was “Owau nei o Palila i hanai ia i
brought up in Alanapo, the loko o Alanapo, ka heiau a ke
temple of the gods from the very ’kua mai ka pouli mai, i hele mai
beginning of all things, and I e hakaka me oe.” A lohe o
have come to fight you.” When Olomana, makau iho la ia i ka
Olomana heard this, he was lohe ana no Alanapo, no ka mea,
sorely afraid, for he knew that ua kaulana ia heiau no ka mana
those who come from the temple o ke ’kua a me ke koa o ke
of Alanapo are men richly kanaka e noho ilaila; nolaila,
endowed with supernatural nonoi aku la o Olomana: “E ola
powers and very great warriors; au e Palila.” Olelo aku o Palila:
so Olomana begged: “Let me “Aole oe e ola ia’u, e make ana
live, Palila.” Palila replied: “I oe, no ka mea, aohe pono o kau
cannot save you; you shall hana.” E pai aku ana o Palila, lele
indeed die, for your works have kekahi aoao o Olomana, me ka
been of evil.” Palila then struck papalina a ku ana i kai, oia o
him, cutting him in two; one Mahinui, o kekahi aoao hoi, oia
portion flew toward the sea, ka puu o Olomana e ku nei. O ke
being Mahinui, and the other kumu hoi i lipilipi ai no ka lele
portion remained where he ana o kekahi aoao. Pela i make
stood, being the present hill of ai o Olomana ke koa kiekie o
Olomana. It was because of this Oahu nei ia Palila.
that the hill is so sharp at the
peak. This was how Olomana,
the great soldier of Oahu, was
killed by Palila.
After Palila had completed the A puni Oahu nei ia Palila, hele
circuit of Oahu, he went along to aku la ia a ka piina o Kaimuki, a
the rise at Kaimuki and then iho aku la i Waialae, malaila aku
down to Waialae; from this place a Wailupe, a Maunalua, e noho
he proceeded to Wailupe and ana o Kahului, he lawaia no laila.
then on to Maunalua where Kahea mai la o Kahului ia ia nei,
Kahului, a fisherman of that hele aku la keia a kokoke, noho
place, was living. Upon seeing iho la laua a ahiahi, hele mai ana
him Kahului called, so Palila went na kanaka, na wahine, i kapa
to Kahului and they sat down kahakai e hopuhopu iao, hi aku.
and began to talk on various Ninau aku la o Palila ia Kahului:
matters. That afternoon the men “Heaha keia kanaka e paapu nei
and women came along the o ke kai?” “He kaee iao, i mea hi
shore in the pools to catch aku, no ka la apopo.” I aku o
minnows for bait, for aku fishing Palila: “A pehea la hoi kaua?”
for tomorrow. Palila again asked: “Ka, aohe o’u lua e hiki ai ka waa
“How about us two?” “But I have ke hoe, no ka mea, he waa nui,
no one to assist me in paddling ehiku anana ka loa.” Olelo aku
the canoe because I have a very no o Palila: “O kaua no hoi paha
large one, it being seven ke hoe i ka waa i hiki.” Alaila,
fathoms in length.” Palila then hele aku la laua i ka iao a loaa,
said: “The two of us will paddle waiho iho la a ao ae holo i ka hi
it in order to make it go.” They aku.
then started out and caught
some minnows which they kept
for the next day.

In the early morning when they Eia nae, i ke kakahiaka nui, ua

came out they found that all the pau loa na kanaka i ka holo i kai
others had gone before them; so i ka lawaia, aohe kanaka nana e
Kahului thought they would not hapai ka waa; nolaila, olelo aku
be able to get their canoe into o Kahului ia Palila: “Aole e hiki
the sea; he then turned to Palila ana ka waa i ka hapai, aohe
and said: “We will not be able to kanaka e hiki ai.” I aku o Palila:
get our canoe into the sea as “Mamua oe e hapai ai, mahope
there are no men to assist us.” [149]aku nei au, mai nana mai oe
Palila replied: “You get in front i hope nei.” Ia pahu ana no a
and lift while I lift the [148]after Palila, lana i loko o ke kai, ka
part here; but you must not look waa. Mamua o Palila o ka waa
behind.” Palila gave the canoe me na hoe eiwa, mahope o
one shove and it floated in the Kahului me kana hoe. Lalau aku
sea; he then jumped in the fore la o Palila i ka hoe, a hou iho i
part of the canoe and took up lalo, a kai ae, ua haki, pela a pau
nine paddles while Kahului na hoe eiwa, olelo mai o Kahului:
jumped into the after part and “Aole e hiki ka waa o kaua, aohe
took up his paddle. After they hoe, e hoi kaua.” Lalau iho la o
were ready to start Palila took up Palila i ka laau palau ana, a hoe
one paddle and with one stroke iho la, hookahi mapuna hoe,
broke it in two; so he took up hele ana laua nei ma lalo o
another paddle and that too was Kawaihoa, hiki i Kolo, he ko’a ia.
broken; this was kept up until all
the nine paddles were broken.
Kahului then said to Palila: “Let
us return for we have no more
paddles to work the canoe with.”
Palila then took up his war club
and used it as a paddle; he took
but one stroke and they went
skimming along beyond
Kawaihoa, then on to Kolo, the
great fishing grounds.

When Kahului saw how fast they Ma keia holo ana, ua mahalo o
were traveling he admitted the Kahului i ka ikaika o Palila,
great strength displayed by lawaia iho la o Kahului, aohe
Palila. Upon arriving at the loaa o ke aku, no ka pau o ka
fishing grounds Kahului makau i ka mokumoku. I aku o
proceeded to fish, but after Palila: “Ahea loaa ka kaua ia?” I
several trials he was unable to mai o Kahului: “He ia ke kai, o
catch any aku, for all his hooks ka lou ole ka hewa i ka makau.
were broken. After a time Palila O ka makau ia e mokumoku nei,
asked: “When are we to catch aohe make ae o ka ia, ua pau
some fish?” Kahului replied: “The loa na makau, a koe no hookahi i
sea is full of fish, but the trouble koe.” Olelo aku o Palila: “E hoi
is I cannot catch any. Here I mai oe mamua nei e hoe ai i ka
have lost several hooks, but I waa o kaua, owau ke hoi aku e
have not been able to land a lawaia.” Ae mai la o Kahului.
single fish. I have used up all my
hooks except one.” Palila then
said: “You come in front here
and paddle our canoe along, and
I will come and fish.” This was
done by Kahului.

Palila then took up his war club Lalau iho la o Palila i ka laau
and tied the bait on to it and let palau ana ia Huliamahi, a mali
it down to the sea. The fish then iho la i ka iao a waiho aku la o
gathered on to the club in great lalo, lele mai la ke aku e ai, ka
numbers. When Palila saw this ae la keia i luna o ka waa i ke
he jerked up the club and the aku, pela no ka hana ana a
fish dropped into the canoe. He komo ka waa o laua i ka ia. Hoi
repeated this several times until aku la laua a pae i uka, olelo aku
the canoe was loaded down la o Palila ia Kahului: “E hoi oe e
deep with fish. They then pulehu ia, na’u e hapai ka waa o
returned to the landing. When kaua.” Hookahi no panee ana
they reached the landing Palila kau ka waa i ke aki.
said to Kahului: “You go on
ahead and broil me some of the
fish and I will lift the canoe
ashore.” Palila then gave the
canoe one shove and it landed
high and dry and onto its blocks.

After the fish was cooked they Moa ae la ka ia, ai iho la laua.
sat down to their meal. After a Noho iho la laua a hala he mau
few days Palila left Kahului la, haalele o Palila ia Kahului no
because he was too stingy, and ke pi. Hele aku la ia a luna o
he again continued on his Hanauma, nana aku la i ka
journey along the coast until he enaena o ke pili o Kaunakahakai,
arrived on the rise of Hanauma, i Molokai, pahu aku la ia i kana
where he stood and looked at laau palau, a maluna o laila ia i
the heat as it ascended from the hiki ai a Kaluakoi. Ilaila, waiho ia
pili grass at Kaunakakai, Molokai. i kekahi aoao o kona mai, oia o
He then pushed out his war club Kalaeokalaau a hiki i keia la,
ahead of him which flew through mamuli o ka mai o Palila ia inoa.
the air and he was carried to
Kaluakoi. Here he discarded a
portion of his person which
turned into the point of
Kalaeokalaau, which is seen to
this day, so named in honor of
Palila.

There was at this place a large Aia i laila, he laau nui, o

stick of wood to which was given Hooneenuu kona inoa. No keia
the name of Hooneenuu. inoa o ka laau o Hooneenuu,
Because of this name, hoowahawaha o Palila ia
Hooneenuu, Palila took a dislike Molokai, ma kona manao, he
to Molokai, so he again pushed kiona keia laau, nolaila, haalele
out his war club and flew to iho la o Palila ia Molokai, a holo
Kaunolu, Lanai. From this place aku la. Pahu aku la ia i kana laau
he crossed over to Kahoolawe palau mamua, mahope o Palila,
and from there to Pohakueaea in a pae laua ma Kaunolu i Lanai,
Honuaula. At this place he sat malaila aku a Kahoolawe, malaila
down and rested. aku a Pohakueaea i Honuaula.

After resting for some time he Alaila, noho iho la i laila

pushed out his spear and flew to hoomaha, pahu hou i ka ihe ana,
Kaula in Hamakua, Hawaii, the hiki i Kaula ma Hamakua i
dividing line separating the Hawaii, ka mokuna o Hilo me
districts of Hilo and Hamakua. Hamakua. Hele aku la a loaa ko
From this place he continued on Hina muli o Lupea, noho ana i
until he found Lupea, a sister of Kaawalii, maluna mai, he kahu
Hina, who was living above hanai no ia no Palila. A he hau o
Kaawalii; she was one of Palila’s Lupea a hiki i keia la, a ma kahi i
attendants. Lupea is a hau tree kaulai ia ai ka malo o Palila, aole
to this day, and wherever the e ulu ka hau malaila a hiki i keia
malo of Palila was spread out to la, no ka mea, he hana na ke
dry no hau 11 tree has grown ’kua. O Ku ka inoa o ko Palila
even to this day. This was akua, he [151]akua mana a me ka
caused by the god Ku, the god ikaika loa. A he heiau no hoi ko
of Palila, a god of supernatural Hilo o Humuula, e like me ko
power. [150]There was at Hilo a Kauai heiau o Humuula, a he
temple also called Humuula, like kapu no, a he ’kua no, a he
the one on Kauai, which was mana no, ua like a like.
also sacred, and furthermore it
was also under the control of the
spirits and was just as powerful.

The king of Hilo at this time was O ke ’lii o Hilo ia wa, o

Kulukulua, and Wanua was the Kulukulua, o Wanua ko Hamakua
king of Hamakua. The two were alii, e noho ana laua me ke kaua.
at war with each other. The O na koa kaulana o Hamakua, o
greatest warrior of Hamakua was Moanonuikalehua, o kana laau
Moanonuikalehua and his war palau o Koholalele, hookahi lau
club was called Koholalele. 12 This kanaka e amo ai, eha haneri ma
war club was so large that it ka helu hou. O Kumunuiaiake, he
required four hundred men to koa ia, o kana ihe, he mamane o
carry it. The next in greatness Kawaihae, he umi anana ka loa,
was Kumunuiaiake, a warrior of aole e maalili kana ihe ke o i ke
note. His spear was made from ahupuaa hookahi. O
the mamane 13 wood of Puupuukaamai, he koa ia, o kana
Kawaihae; it was ten fathoms in laau he pololu, he koaie makua
length and he could throw this no ke kuahiwi, lulu ka makani,
spear over a distance greater hoi ka wai o ke kahawai, pau na
than the length of an ahupuaa. lau kanaka ekolu i ka pahu
Puupuukaamai was another hookahi ana. O neia mau koa
great warrior. His long pololu ekolu, mahope o Wanua ke ’lii o
spear was made from the koaie 14 Hamakua.
wood, a very hard wood growing
in the mountains. This spear was
so long that it could be served as
a wind break, and it could also
be used to dam a stream; it
could kill twelve hundred men at
one stroke. All these three
warriors were fighting on the
side of Wanua, the king of
Hamakua.

When Palila arrived at Kaula he O ka Palila hana i ka pali o

took up the game of rolling the Kaula, o ka olokaa ipu i ke
calabash which was played on alanui, me ka hele ole ma o a
the highway. He never once left ma o, me ka ike o na mea a pau
the place and was known by o ke alanui kona wahi noho.
everybody that passed along the Iloko o ka wa kaua, ua nui ka
highway as a man who did make o na kanaka o Hamakua,
nothing else. In the battles that aole nae i ike ia ka mea nana e
were being fought, a great many luku nei, pela a nui na la i hala
of the men of the army of mahope, aohe ike ia. Aka, ua
Hamakua were being killed that lohe kekahi poe ma ka leo, i loko
no one could account for. This o ka hoouka poe ana o ke kaua,
was carried on for many days penei:
and still no one could tell who
was doing the killing. In the
conflict, however, some of the
men often heard a voice calling
out:

Slain by me, Palila, A make na’u na Palila,

By the offspring of Walewale, Na kama a ka Walewale,
By the ward of Lupea, Na ka hanai a Lupea,
By the oo bird that sings in the Na ka oo kani i ke kuahiwi nei la,
forest, Na ke ’kua ikaika na Ku.
By the mighty god Ku.

The call was the only thing the O ka leo wale no ke lohe ia, aole
men could hear; they were not ke kino, no ka mama loa o Palila
able to see the person for he ma ka holo ana, nolaila, aole
traveled at such great speed. mea i ike ia ia, aka, ua nui ka
The people had a suspicion, noonoo o na kanaka nona, no ka
however, that it was Palila pau loa i ka make. A o ka olelo a
himself; but when the matter kekahi poe aole ana hele e kaua,
was discussed a good many said he olokaa ipu wale no kana hana
that it could not be Palila for he i ke alanui, aohe ano koa, aohe
does not go to battle; all he did hele ma o, a ma o. I ka hoouka
was to roll the calabash on the kaua ana ma Kukaiau i
highway; he does not appear to Hamakua, i laila o Palila i hoike
be a soldier and he has not been kino ai ia ia iho imua o ka
seen going from place to place. lehulehu, a me na ’lii o na aoao
At the battle that was fought at elua, a me na koa kaulana ekolu,
Kukaiau in Hamakua, Palila at oia o Moanonuikalehua, o
last showed himself before the Kumunuiaiake, o Puupuukaamai.
people and the chiefs of the two
contesting armies, and also
before the three great warriors
Moanonuikalehua, Kumunuiaiake
and Puupuukaamai.

In the conflict it was seen that I ka hoouka ana o ke kaua, ua oi

the soldiers in the Hamakua ka ikaika o na koa o Hamakua i
army were stronger than those ko Hilo, a ua nui ka make o Hilo i
in the Hilo army and a great ko Hamakua. Ma keia hoouka
many Hilo soldiers fell before the ana ua lohe ia ka leo kaena a ua
men of Hamakua. In the din and mau koa nei, e olelo ana: “Owai
uproar the voices of the three ko Hilo koa ikaika e ku mai e
great warriors were often heard kaua.”
boasting and calling out: “What
great soldier will fight for the
Hilo side?”

When Palila heard this boastful A lohe o Palila i keia alelo kaena
challenge from the three great a ua poe koa nei, alaila, nonoi
warriors, he requested of aku ia i ke ’lii o Hilo, ia
Kulukulua, the Hilo king, to order Kulukulua, e waiho ke kaua
that the general conflict be aluka a me ka poe, a e ku
stopped and [152]to put up the pakahi. Ina i make ke [153]koa o
two best men from the two sides kekahi aoao, alaila, make kona
and let them fight, the side alii a lilo i pio na kekahi aoao, a
putting up the best man to win pela no hoi kekahi aoao. A
and in this way decide the battle. hooholo ia ia mea e na ’lii, ku
When this was agreed on by the kaawale ae la na koa, a kaawale
two kings, the soldiers were ke kahua kaua.
lined up on the two sides,
leaving a clear field in the middle
for the contestants.

As soon as the field was cleared Ku mai la o Moanonuikalehua me

off Moanonuikalehua came kana laau palau o Koholalele, a
forward with his war club, hookaa akau, aohe kupono ia
Koholalele, and began twirling it Palila, hookaa hema, aohe
on the right and on the left; on kupono ia Palila, ia ia e hookaa
each occasion Palila did not ana, kaupale aku o Palila i kana
make a move, but as laau o Huliamahi, loaa i ka
Moanonuikalehua kept on Moanonuikalehua laau, lele i
twirling, Palila held out his war luna a haule i Waipio. Ia wa,
club, Huliamahi, which struck the hualepo o Palila i ka laau ana,
club of Moanonuikalehua, make na koa ekolu, lilo ka auwae
sending it flying to Waipio. At ia ianei, noke aku ana keia i ke
the same time Palila brought his kaa hema i ka laau ana ia
club down and then up, catching Huliamahi, aohe koe kanaka o
the three warriors and killing Hamakua, halulu ka honua a nei
them all. Palila then proceeded i ka laau a Palila, nolaila aohe
to cut out their lower jaws. After kanaka koa i mua ona ia wa e aa
this was done he began the mai, aohe alii. Pela i lanakila ai o
slaughter of the Hamakua men Kulukulua, ko Hilo alii, maluna o
and allowed none to escape him. Wanua ko Hamakua alii.
This victory made Kulukulua, the
king of Hilo, master of Wanua,
the king of Hamakua.

After the battle Palila and the A pau ke kaua, hoi aku la o Palila
king returned to Kaula and from me ke ’lii a hiki i Kaula maluna
there to a rise above where a aku, i laila he kumu ohia nui, o
large lehua 15 tree was standing. Kahakaauwae kona inoa, i laila
He then hung up the jaws of all na auwae a pau o na kanaka i
the men killed by him, and the make ia Palila ma na kaua
tree was named Kahakaauwae, mamua aku, o kahi ia e kau ai.
the hanging place of the jaws. Nolaila, lilo o Palila i alii no Hilo,
Palila after this became the king a malalo o Kulukulua ona, pela i
of Hilo, while Kulukulua served noho ai o Palila a hiki i ka make
under him. Palila was king until ana. [154]
his death. [137]

1 Cord for braiding calabash or other

nets for carrying burdens, from
which it takes the name koko. Cord for
fish nets is aha, and for fish lines aho.
Some doubt prevails as to the kaula
koko referred to, whether literally a
“blood rope” or cord, or a piece of cord
as used in making a calabash net, also
called koko. ↑
2 Halialia, the rising of a fond
recollection of a person is in this
case a premonition. ↑
3 It is not clear why opposing warriors
should expect to be called, as if in
consultation, on reaching the battle
field, and take it as a matter of shame
or disgrace if they are not. ↑
4 This seems rather ambiguous. ↑
5 An unusual time and place for
circumcision. Customarily it was a
ceremony attended with a strict ritual
temple service. ↑
6 Oloa kapa, name of small white
kapas formerly put over the gods
during prayers; also a gift to a child at
time of birth. (Andrews’ dict.) ↑
7 These northern cliffs of Kauai, in
olden time were famed as the scene
of Hawaiian pyrotechnics on festive
occasions, which consisted of
firebrands of auhau or other very light
wood being thrown from their heights
to descend slowly ablaze to the sea at
their base; the lightness of the wood
and upward current of wind rendering a
slowness of descent at times as to
entirely consume the firebrand in mid
air. This was particularly a sport of
Kauai folk, and has occasional practice
in recent years. ↑
8 The bards evidently liked to picture

their alii as of such high and sacred

rank that the sun should not smite
them, nor the rain or wind touch
them. ↑
9 Kahehuna is that portion of Honolulu
about the head of Emma street,
where the present Royal School is
located. ↑
10 Nothing small, evidently, about a
Hawaiian giant, any more than there
was in the famous clubs of their
heroes. ↑
11 Hau (Paritium tiliaceum). ↑
12 Koholalele is the name of one of the
principal landings on the Hamakua
coast of Hawaii. ↑
13 Mamane (Sophora chrysophylla), a
hard and most durable wood. ↑
14 Koaie (Acacia koaia), a species of
koa, much harder, and a choice
wood for spears, paddles, etc. As a
furniture wood it is susceptible of high
polish and takes high rank. ↑
15 Lehua, one of the varieties of ohia
(Metrosideros polymorpha) whose
tassel blossoms in their season afford
nectar for the birds and lei decorations
for man and beast. ↑

[Contents]
 Legend of Puniakaia. He Kaao no Puniakaia.

Nuupia was the father and O Nuupia ka makuakane, o

Halekou the mother of Halekou ka makuahine, o
Puniakaia. 1 The land of his birth Puniakaia ke keiki, o Kaneohe ka
was Kaneohe. The parents of aina; he mau alii na makua o
Puniakaia were of the royal Puniakaia, no Koolauloa, a me
blood of Koolauloa and Koolaupoko. He kanaka maikai
Koolaupoko. Puniakaia was a loa o Puniakaia ke nana aku,
very handsome man and had not aohe puu, aohe kee, he pali ke
a single blemish from the top of kua a me ke alo, pela na aoao.
his head to the bottom of his
feet. He was erect, front and Ia Puniakaia e noho ana me
back, and so on the sides. While kona mau makua, makemake iho
Puniakaia was living with his la ia e hele i kahakai e lawaia ai;
parents, a desire to go fishing ia ia i hele ai me kona
came upon him, so he makuahine me Halekou i ka
accompanied his mother to the lawaia, loaa iho la he pauhuuhu
beach and they went fishing. ka ia. O keia ia i loaa, hanai iho
The kind of fish caught by them la o Puniakaia ia ia i ka wa uuku,
was the kind called pauhuuhu, 2 a hiki i kona wa nui, a ua kapaia
but only one. This fish was kona inoa o Uhumakaikai. Oia ka
brought home alive and was makua o na ia a pau loa. Ma keia
saved by Puniakaia; being fed hanai ana a Puniakaia ia
and taken care of until it grew to Uhumakaikai, a nui, alaila,
be a very large fish; and to it hookuu hou ia i ka moana e
was given the name of noho ai.
Uhumakaikai. 3 This fish was the
parent of all the fishes. After
Puniakaia had brought up
Uhumakaikai until it was full
grown, he turned it into the
ocean, free from all confinement.

Some time after this a A mahope, kukala ia na mea a

proclamation was issued calling pau e hele i ka lawaia, a ma keia
everybody to go out fishing, and hele ana, o Puniakaia kekahi i
amongst those who obeyed the hele, a hiki lakou i kahi e lawaia
call was Puniakaia. When the ai, ilaila o Puniakaia i kahea ai ia
fishermen arrived at the fishing Uhumakaikai; penei ke kahea
place, Puniakaia called upon ana:
Uhumakaikai in the following
manner:

Say, Uhumakaikai, E Uhumakaikai,

Crawl this way, crawl this way, E kolo mai, e kolo mai;
Draw along this way, draw along E kolokolo mai; e kolokolo mai;
this way; Eia au la o Puniakaia!
For here am I, Puniakaia; O ka ia no a nui loa,
Send the fish in large numbers A ku ka pilau i uka nei!
Until the beach here is stenched; A ai ka puaa a haalele,
The pigs will eat until they reject Ai ka ilio a hoomaunauna.
them,
And the dogs will eat until they
waste them.

As soon as Puniakaia ceased A hooki o Puniakaia i ke kahea

calling, Uhumakaikai was seen to ana i ka ia, ia wa o Uhumakaikai
be driving all the fish to i a mai ai i na ia a pau loa, mai
Puniakaia; the fish reached from lalo ka ia a luna o ka ilikai, o ia
way down deep in the sea to the hele o ka ia a hiki i uka, a pae i
surface, and they were driven kaha one. Ia manawa na kanaka
clear up onto the sand. Upon i ohi ai i ka ia a kopi, a haawi, a
seeing this the people began pela aku, o na kanaka a pau loa
taking up the fish; some were mai ka lae o Makapuu a ka lae o
salted, some given away to the Kaoio, ma Kualoa. Ma keia hele
people, and so on, from the nui ana o na kanaka e ohi i ka ia,
Makapuu point to the Kaoio point aole i pau no ka nui loa, a
at Kualoa. With all this great haalele okoa lakou i ka ia, a ai ka
number of people taking the puaa me ka ilio.
fish, still there was a large
number left, there being so A ma keia lawaia ana, ua kui aku
many; and the people had to la ke kaulana a lohe o Kaalaea,
leave a great many behind and he wahine maikai loa ia, aole
the pigs and dogs ate of them. ona lua ma Koolau a puni, ua
Rumors of this great catch were like laua me Puniakaia, ke nana
soon carried to the hearing of aku. [157]
Kaalaea, 4 a very beautiful
woman, who had no equal in all
the land of Koolau; she was just
like Puniakaia [very pleasant] to
look upon. [156]

relating to kaalaea. no kaalaea.

When the news of the great Holo aku la o Kaalaea, me kona

catch of fish came to Kaalaea, mau kaikunane he umi, he umi
she and her ten brothers lakou he umi waa, o ko Kaalaea
boarded their canoes, each waa, he umikumamakahi waa; a
taking one, making eleven hiki lakou ma kahi o ka ia i pae
canoes, and went to the place ai, pae aku la na waa o lakou a
where the fish were being uka, kau iho la, noho iho la o
collected. When these canoes Kaalaea ma ka ae one maloo,
landed, Kaalaea went up on the me ka hele ole ma o a ma o, me
sand and sat down and did not ka noho malie e nana ana i na