A story translated in English and ʻŌlelo.
by Shanoa Quanan
The first people to surf the waves along the famous California coast were three teenage Hawaiian princes in 1885: David Kawānanakoa, Edward Keliʻiahonui, and the youngest, Jonah Kūhiō Kalanianaʻole. The brothers had been sent to study at Saint Matthew’s School in San Mateo to prepare for future leadership roles in the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi, a nation entering a rapidly changing and globalizing world. Yet it was the youngest, Prince Jonah Kūhiō, who became not only a trailblazer in surfing but also a figure whose life and legacy continue to be celebrated in Hawaiʻi today.
Prince Jonah Kūhiō was born on March 26, 1871, in Kōloa on the island of Kauaʻi. Born into Hawaiian royalty, he and his brothers were raised and educated to lead their people. While studying in California, the brothers crafted 17-foot redwood surfboards and rode the waves during their first summer. Their efforts helped reintroduce and spread the sport of surfing beyond Hawaiʻi. Later, while studying in England, they became among the first to surf the waves of Europe.
Kūhiō returned to Hawaiʻi during a time of great political upheaval, around the period of the overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi. He joined efforts to restore Queen Liliʻuokalani to the throne, though these efforts were ultimately unsuccessful. After his release from imprisonment, Kūhiō and his wife traveled throughout Europe and Africa, broadening their understanding of global politics and military strategy.
Upon returning home, Kūhiō became a prominent leader and one of the first Hawaiian representatives in the United States Congress. There, he advocated for progressive policies, including women’s suffrage and housing programs for Native Hawaiians. He served in this role until his death on January 7, 1922. Today, Jonah Kūhiō remains a symbol of cultural tradition, education, and political leadership in a changing Hawaiʻi.
Surf X Fashion: Surfing The Waves of Change
ʻO ka poʻe mua i heʻe ai i nā nalu kaulana o Kaliponi, ʻo ia nā kamāliʻi kāne ʻōpio he ʻekolu o Hawaiʻi ma ka makahiki 1885: ʻO David Kawānanakoa, Edward Keliʻiahonui, a me ka muli, ʻo Jonah Kūhiō Kalanianaʻole. Ua hoʻouna ʻia nā kamāliʻi kāne i ke kula ʻo Saint Matthew’s School ma San Mateo, Kaleponi, i mea e hoʻomākaukau ai iā lākou e lilo ai i mau aliʻi a alakaʻi ma Ke Aupuni o Hawaiʻi, i mākaukau pono no ka nui o ka loli ma ke ao i ia manawa. ʻO ka muli naʻe, ʻo Jonah Kūhiō, ka mea i hele a kaulana loa kona inoa no kona hoʻolauna ʻana i ka heʻe nalu i ka honua, a me nā hana ʻē aʻe i hoʻohanohano ʻia ma Hawaiʻi nei a i kēia lā.
Ua hānau ʻia ke Kamāliʻi Kāne Jonah Kūhiō ma ka lā 26 o Malaki, 1871, ma Kōloa, Kauaʻi, ka moku kāʻili lā. Ma muli o kona hānau ʻia ma kekahi ʻohana aliʻi, ua hānai a aʻo ʻia ʻo ia, a me kona mau kaikuaʻana, e lilo i mau alakaʻi no ko lākou poʻe. Iā lākou e hele kula ana ma Kaliponi, ua hana lima lākou i mau papa heʻe nalu mai ka lāʻau redwood, he 17 kapuaʻi ka lōʻihi. Ma kēia hana i kōkua ai lākou ma ka hoʻolaha ʻana i ka heʻe nalu ʻana i nā wahi ma waho aku o
Hawaiʻi. Ma hope mai, iā lākou e hele kula ana ma ʻEnelani, ua lilo lākou o lākou kekahi o ka poʻe mua i heʻe ai i nā nalu ma ʻEulopa.
Ua hoʻi ʻo Kūhiō i Hawaiʻi ma kekahi wā pilikia nui o ke aupuni, ma kahi o ka wā i hoʻokāhuli ʻia ai Ke Aupuni o Hawaiʻi. Ua kōkua ʻo ia ma ka hoʻāʻo ʻana e hoʻonoho hou i ka Mōʻī Liliʻuokalani i kona noho kalaunu, ʻaʻole naʻe i kō. Ma hope mai o kona hoʻokuʻu ʻia mai ka hale hoʻopaʻahao, ua huakaʻi ʻo Kūhiō lāua o kāna wahine i ʻEulopa a me ʻApelika, i hiki ke hoʻoulu ʻia ko lāua naʻauao ma nā hana kālaiʻāina a me nā hana pūʻalikoa.
Ma kona hoʻi ʻana i kona one hānau, ua lilo ʻo Kūhiō i alakaʻi nui a koʻikoʻi, a ua lilo pū ʻo ia ʻo i kekahi o nā ʻelele Hawaiʻi mua loa ma ka ʻAhaʻōlelo o ʻAmelika Hui Pū ʻIa. Ma laila ʻo ia i paʻu no nā mea hou, e like me nā pono wahine, a me nā hale no nā Hawaiʻi. Ma laila kona ʻoihana a hiki i kona hala ʻana ma ka lā 7 o Ianuali, 1922. I kēia lā, ʻo Jonah Kūhiō kekahi kūmhōʻailona no ka ʻike kuʻuna, ka hoʻonaʻauao, a me ke alakaʻi ana ma nā hana kālaiʻāina ma kekahi wā loli nui ma Hawaiʻi.
Credits
Starring: Lily Hubbard
Photographer: Acacia Blyth
Stylist: Acacia Blyth
Article by Shanoa Quanan