Talking Story, Hawaiian Kine
The Hawaiian language, nearly extinct just 20 years ago, is enjoying a big revival thanks to immersion schools, which are honoring isle legend Don Ho
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Don Ho, flanked by Maluhia Hirahara and La‘akea
Awong, with from left, Ho‘oli Baptiste, Kekaioni
Amina, Lanakila Pei, Manaiakalani Wolfgramm,
Milika Cho, La‘awahine Cuban, Keanuenue DeSoto,
Kamalu Abad, Kalama Abad, Makamae Peralta,
Hi‘iau Kam and Kaluna Amina
Imagine the impact of this announcement: “Effective immediately, all children must speak Hawaiian, the state’s official language. This is decreed by law and applies to all communications in public and private schools. There are no exceptions. Violators will be ostracized and subject to punishment.”
Ready. Begin. Speak Hawaiian only.
Change the language of our population overnight? Absurd, you say. Civilized societies don’t do this. It destroys one’s identity and pride. This could never happen here.
Fact is, it did.
When the Hawaiian monarchy was overthrown in 1893, the provisional government prohibited the speaking or teaching of the Hawaiian language. The suppression of the Hawaiian language lasted for most of the 20th century.
In 1983, most native speakers of Hawaiian were over 70 years old. There were fewer than 50 children under the age of 18 fluent in the language. The Hawaiian language nearly vanished.
What impact would this have had on our society?
Sociologists say the connection between language and culture is inextricable. If you kill the language, they say, you kill the culture.
It was this frightening fate that brought together a small group of Hawaiian-speaking educators on the island of Kauai in 1983. They discussed the demise of the Hawaiian language, then teetering on the brink of extinction like so many native animal species.
Kamalu Abad presents a
school T-shirt to Don Ho and
wife Haumea
The group decided it was time to re-establish a Hawaiian language education system. They opened a preschool on Kauai, where the last community of Hawaiian-speaking children could be mixed with English-speaking children.
This type of school is called a Punana Leo, “nest of voices” or language nest.
Today there are approximately 2,000 children being educated in Hawaiian in schools run by the `Aha Punana Leo or in schools established by the state in response to the program. There are 11
Punana Leo schools statewide, including five on Oahu.
A strict policy of no English in Punana Leo schools results in children rapidly learning and regularly using Hawaiian. For the first time in more than 50 years, children are speaking fluently in Hawaiian with their grandparents and with each other. The movement has grown explosively and has affected enrollments in Hawaiian language courses at high schools and colleges.
Each year, the non-profit organization names a “Ne’epapa I Ke O Mau” (Moving Forward Together) honoree at a dinner-celebration of the Hawaiian language.
Entertainer Don Ho is the 2006 honoree, announces `Aha Punana Leo president-founder Kauanoe Kamana.
“Don Ho has dedicated his life to sharing the uniqueness of Hawaii’s culture, language and heritage through his tireless work as an entertainer over the past 40-plus years,” she says. “His work as an ambassador for our island home and his desire to continually hold onto, promote and uplift our culture was critical through a time when being Hawaiian may not have been too popular.”
She adds, “His dedication and passion helps to prime Hawaii for the revitalization efforts we experience today, especially relative to our native language.”
Previous Ne’epapa awardees include U.S. Sen. Daniel K. Akaka, U.S. Sen. Daniel K. Inouye, late businessman and phil-anthropist Dwayne “Nakila” Steele and U.S. Rep. Neil Abercrombie.
Organizers expect 800 guests at the Dec. 15 dinner and awards presentation at the Sheraton Waikiki.
We ask Ho to meet us at the Aloha Tower Marketplace restaurant that bears his name to talk about his support of Punana Leo and his views on Hawaiian values.
As he saunters into Don Ho’s
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