Inoa | Name(s)
Poliʻahu
Hōʻuluʻulu manaʻo
ʻO Poliʻahu ke akua wahine e noho ana ma Maunakea. Kaulana ʻo ia no kona kapa hau, e uhi ana i ka mauna. ʻŌlelo ʻia “Poliʻahu, ka wahine ke kapa hau anu o Mauna Kea1,” no kona kinolau, ʻo ka hau anu, a me kona wahi noho, ka mauna kiʻekiʻe loa ma Hawaiʻi.
ʻO Līlīnoe, Waiau, a me Kahoupokāne kona mau kaikaina e noho pū ana ma Maunakea me ia.
Aia he mau moʻolelo e pili ana iā ia. Ma ka moʻolelo ʻo Lāʻieikawai, he pilina aloha kāna me ke aliʻi ʻo ʻAiwohikūpua no Kauaʻi. Haʻalele ʻo ʻAiwohikūpua iā Poliʻahu no Hinaikamālama no Hāna ma muli ʻo kāna hoʻohiki me Hinaikamālama e male kekahi. Ma muli o kona hūhū, kuʻu ihola ʻo Poliʻahu i ke anu a me ka wela ma luna Hinaikamālama a me ʻAiwohikūpua a hoʻokaʻawale ʻia lāua2. Ma kekahi moʻolelo kaulana pū ka hoʻokūkū heʻe hōlua ma waena o Poliʻahu a me Pele i mālama ʻia ma Laupāhoehoe3.
Description
Poliʻahu is a Hawaiian goddes who lives on Maunakea. She is known for her blanket of snow that covers the mountain. It is said “Poliʻahu, ka wahine ke kapa hau anu o Mauna Kea1,” for her natural form, snow, and her dwelling place, the highest peak on Hawaiʻi.
Līlīnoe, Waiau, and Kahoupokāne are her sisters that live with her on Maunakea.
There are many stories about her. In the story of Lāʻieikawai, she is romantically involved with the chief of Kauaʻi, ʻAiwohikūpua. ʻAiwohikūpua leaves Poliʻahu for Hinaikamālama from Hāna because he also promised to marry Hinaikamālama. Because of her rage, Poliʻahu unleashes the deep cold and the intense heat onto Hinaikamālama and ʻAiwohikūpua until they are forced to separate2. In a different story, there occurs a great sledding contest between Poliʻahu and Pele which takes place at Laupāhoehoe3.
ʻŌlelo kuhikuhi
E koho i kēia huaʻōlelo no nā kumuwaiwai pili iā Poliʻahu, ke akua wahine o ka hau ma Maunakea.
Instructions
Use this term for resources related to Poliʻahu, the goddess of snow who lives atop Maunakea.
Moʻokūʻauhau | Genealogy
Akua | Deity: Līlīnoe; Waiau; Kahoupokāne; ʻAiwohikūpua; Hinaikamālama; Pele
ʻĀina | Land/sea: Maunakea; Mānā; Laupāhoehoe; Puʻu Poliʻahu (Maunakea)
Hana | Practice: Heʻe hōlua
Kinolau | Form: Hau; Lā
Kūmole | Source(s)
(1) Pukui, Mary Kawena. ’Olelo No’eau : Hawaiian Proverbs & Poetical Sayings. Honolulu, Hawai’i: Bishop Museum Press, 1983.
(2) Haleʻole, S. N, and Hikoʻulā Hanapi. Ke kaʻao o Lāʻieikawai. Hilo, Hawaiʻi: Hale Kuamoʻo, Ka Haka ʻUla o Keʻeliokōlani, 2001.
(3) Westervelt, W. D. (William Drake). Hawaiian Legends of Volcanoes (Mythology) Collected and Translated from the Hawaiian. Boston, Mass: Ellis Press, 1916. pages 55-62.
(4) Pukui, Mary Kawena, and Samuel H. (Samuel Hoyt) Elbert. Hawaiian Dictionary : Hawaiian-English, English-Hawaiian. Rev. and enl. Ed. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1986.
(5) Westervelt, W. D. (William Drake). Hawaiian Legends of Ghosts and Ghost-Gods. Rutland, Vt: C. E. Tuttle, 1963. pages 116-151.
Hoʻopili ʻia i | Applied to: Pele and the snow goddess, Poliʻahu and the breadfruit trees : a short story of rivalry, friendship and compassion
Mea haku | Created by: Puaokamele Dizon; Annemarie Paikai.