The Kahana Designs Journal

The Journal

The Kahana Designs Journal

Stories of Hawaiian culture — the akua, the islands, the flowers, the food, and the language. Written from our studio in Kailua-Kona.

Carved wooden kiʻi guardian images at Puʻuhonua o Hōnaunau, the ancient Hawaiian place of refuge
Puʻuhonua: The Meaning of Hawaiian Places of Refuge
What a puʻuhonua (place of refuge) was in ancient Hawaiʻi, why the kapu system made sanctuaries necessary, and the story of Puʻuhonua o Hōnaunau on Hawaiʻi Island. Read more...
Rows of adjustable gold and steel rings each set with a small real opihi shell, displayed on a jewelry tray
Opihi Jewelry: The Meaning Behind Hawaiʻi's Rarest Shell Rings and Necklaces
What opihi are, why Hawaiians call gathering them dangerous work, and how their shells become some of the rarest, most meaningful jewelry in the islands — opihi rings, opihi necklaces,... Read more...
Aerial view of a Hawaiian valley sloping from mountains to a turquoise bay, illustrating the mauka-to-makai ahupuaʻa land division
Ahupuaʻa: How Ancient Hawaiians Divided Land From Mountain to Sea
What an ahupuaʻa was, how it stretched from mountain to sea, and why this land system is still studied as a model of sustainability today. Read more...
A silversword (ʻāhinahina) rosette growing on Haleakalā's volcanic cinder, Maui
ʻĀhinahina: The Meaning of Hawaiʻi's Rare Silversword Plant
What the rare, silver-leafed ʻāhinahina means in Hawaiian culture, why it grows nowhere else on Earth, and why it blooms only once. Read more...
Iolani Palace tower with the Hawaiian Kingdom flag, historic seat of Hawaiian royalty in Honolulu
Hawaiian Featherwork: The Meaning of ʻAhuʻula and Mahiole
The royal feather cloaks and helmets of Hawaiian aliʻi — how ʻahuʻula and mahiole were made from māmo and ʻiʻiwi feathers, and what they meant. Read more...
Green ulu (breadfruit) growing on a tree, fruit and deeply lobed leaves in Hawaiʻi
ʻUlu (Breadfruit): The Canoe Plant That Fed Ancient Hawaiʻi
ʻUlu (breadfruit) crossed the Pacific with Polynesian voyagers and became a Hawaiian symbol of abundance, resilience, and family provision. Read more...
Close-up of vibrant magenta Cordyline fruticosa (ti leaf) leaves, the sacred plant of Hawaiian culture
Kī (Ti Leaf): The Meaning Behind Hawaiʻi's Most Sacred Plant
Why the humble ti leaf shows up in hula skirts, house doorways, laulau wrappers, and leis across Hawaiʻi — and what it really means to Native Hawaiians. Read more...
Vibrant magenta ti leaf (Cordyline fruticosa) close-up, the sacred kī plant of Hawaiian tradition
What Does Ti Leaf (Kī) Mean in Hawaiian Culture?
Ti leaf, or kī, is one of Hawaiian culture's most sacred plants -- used for centuries in protection, purification, hula, and ceremony. Here's what it really means. Read more...
A coconut palm tree leaning over a sandy tropical beach with ocean waves
What Does Niu (Coconut) Mean in Hawaiian Culture?
Coconut palms look like postcard Hawai‘i, but niu arrived with the first voyagers and carries meaning that has little to do with the beach. Read more...
Black volcanic lava rock coastline in Hawaii with turquoise water
Pōhaku: What Stone Really Means in Hawaiian Culture
Pōhaku, the Hawaiian word for stone, names something Hawaiians have never treated as ordinary. Here is what stone really means in Hawaiian culture, from temple walls to poi pounders to... Read more...
Close-up of heart-shaped kalo (taro) leaves in Hawaii
Kalo (Taro) and Hāloa: What the Elder Sibling Story Means in Hawaiian Genealogy
In Hawaiian genealogy, kalo (taro) isn't just food — it's the elder sibling of the Hawaiian people, born from the story of Hāloa. Read more...
A coconut palm tree reaching toward the sky in Hawaii
Niu: The Coconut Tree and Its Meaning in Hawaiian Culture
How the coconut palm arrived in Hawaii as a Polynesian canoe plant, why it's considered a body form of the god Kū, and how early Hawaiians used every part of... Read more...
Waves break over black lava rock on the Hawaiian coast
Hoʻoponopono: The Hawaiian Practice of Making Things Right
What hoʻoponopono really means, how the traditional Hawaiian family forgiveness process worked, and how it differs from the popular self-help chant. Read more...
Colorful lit-up ALOHA marquee sign, a Hawaiian word, above a thatched storefront
What Language Do They Speak in Hawaiʻi?
Curious what language people speak in Hawaiʻi? Here's the real answer — English, ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi, and the local Pidgin that ties it all together. Read more...
Aerial view of a Hawaiian valley running from mountain ridges down to the coastline, illustrating the ahupuaʻa mountain-to-sea land division
Ahupuaʻa: How Ancient Hawaiians Divided the Land From Mountain to Sea
What an ahupuaʻa is, how the mountain-to-sea land division worked, who managed it, and why the system still shapes Hawaiian land and water stewardship today. Read more...
A Hawaiian green sea turtle (honu) swimming in clear blue ocean water
ʻAumakua: The Meaning of Hawaiian Family Guardian Spirits
What an ʻaumakua is in Hawaiian culture — the family guardian ancestors who appear as sharks, owls, and sea turtles to watch over their descendants. Read more...
Two green breadfruit (ulu) hanging on a tree amid deeply-lobed breadfruit leaves
ʻUlu: The Story and Meaning of the Hawaiian Breadfruit Tree
ʻUlu (breadfruit) is a canoe plant tied to the god Kū, who became the first breadfruit tree to feed his family during famine. The legend, traditional uses, and modern revival... Read more...
A shark silhouetted from below against the sunlit ocean surface
Manō: What the Shark Means in Hawaiian Culture
In Hawaiian tradition the manō (shark) is often an ʻaumakua — an ancestral guardian who watches over the family. Here is what the shark truly means in Hawaiian culture. Read more...
A rainbow (ānuenue) arcs across the misty green mountains of Hawaiʻi
Ānuenue: What the Rainbow Means in Hawaiian Culture
In Hawaiʻi a rainbow is never just weather. Discover what ānuenue means in Hawaiian culture — a sacred sign of the gods, ancestors, and the aliʻi. Read more...
A vivid rainbow (ānuenue) arcing down across misty, lush green Hawaiian mountains
Ānuenue: What the Rainbow Means in Hawaiian Culture
In Hawaiian tradition the rainbow, or ānuenue, was a sign of chiefs and gods — a bridge between worlds. A guide to its meaning, the many Hawaiian words for rainbows,... Read more...
Sunlight streaming through a lush forest onto fresh flowing water, symbolizing Kāne, the Hawaiian god of light, fresh water, and life in Hawaiʻi
Kāne: Hawaiian God of Creation and Life
Meet Kāne, the Hawaiian god of creation, sunlight, and fresh water — the highest of the four great akua and the life-giving source at the heart of Hawaiian mythology. Read more...
Large heart-shaped taro (kalo) leaves, the plant Hawaiians consider an ancestor
Kalo (Taro): Why Hawaiʻi's Sacred Plant Is Considered an Ancestor
In Hawaiian tradition, kalo (taro) is not just a food crop — it is the elder sibling of the Hawaiian people. Here is the story of Hāloa and why kalo... Read more...
Humuhumunukunukuāpuaʻa, the reef triggerfish and state fish of Hawaiʻi, on a coral reef
Humuhumunukunukuāpuaʻa: Hawaiʻi's State Fish
Meet the humuhumunukunukuāpuaʻa, the reef triggerfish and official Hawaii state fish — what its long name means, its legend, and where to see one on the reef. Read more...
Red ʻōhiʻa lehua blossoms (Metrosideros polymorpha) on the tree at Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park
The Legend of ʻŌhiʻa Lehua: Hawaiʻi's Most Beloved Flower Story
The Hawaiian legend of ʻŌhiʻa and Lehua — the love story behind Hawaiʻi's iconic red flower, why picking it is said to bring rain, and why the ʻōhiʻa tree matters... Read more...

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