Leilani Basham’s article investigates the historical meanings of the term Lāhui Hawai‘i (the Hawaiian people/nation) by analysing Hawaiian‑language sources from the mid‑ to late‑1800s. Drawing on genealogies (mo‘okūʻauhau), histories and literature (mo‘olelo), chants and poetry (mele), as well as concepts of land (ʻāina), cultural practice (loina) and sovereignty/life (ea), Basham shows how the Lāhui was defined by its own people as a composite of ancestry, language, customs, territory and political independence. The article situates these definitions within the colonial contest between the United States federal government and the State of Hawai‘i over jurisdiction, illustrating how legal and legislative debates invoke the same cultural categories. Basham also presents a selection of 19th‑century newspaper excerpts, missionary writings, and traditional chants that juxtapose Hawaiian values (generosity, aloha, language) against foreign (haole) practices, underscoring the role of cultural resilience in identity formation. The concluding argument stresses that contemporary Hawaiian identity must be rooted in these traditional foundations rather than imposed external frameworks.
Topics
Colonial Legal Contestations of the Hawaiian Nation
Examines U.S. congressional acts, territorial statutes, and court decisions that have defined, limited, or challenged the political status and rights of the lâhui Hawai‘i from the Kingdom era through annexation and statehood.