Kohala Kuamo‘o: Nae‘ole’s Race to Save a King

HE MOʻOʻŌLELO NO KOHALA I HAʻI WAHA ʻIA MAI NA NĀ KŪPUNA A HAʻI HOU ʻIA NAʻEKOLA HANAUNA O KA ʻOHANA ʻO KAWAIʻAEʻA, HE MAU PUA NA NAEʻOLE.

A Kohala oral tradition passed on by kūpuna and retold by 3 generations of the Kawaiʻaeʻa ʻohana, who are descendants of Naeʻole.

When a prophecy proclaims that the unborn Kamehameha would grow to overshadow the ruling chiefs, his life from birth is in danger. Nae‘ole races with the helpless infant across the Kohala district of Hawai‘i Island to bring Kamehameha to safety.

by Kekauleleonaeʻole Kawaiʻaeʻa
illustrated by Aaron Kawaiʻaeʻa