The aliʻi were the traditional nobility of the
Hawaiian islands
The Hawaiian Islands ( haw, Nā Mokupuni o Hawai‘i) are an archipelago of eight major islands, several atolls, and numerous smaller islets in the North Pacific Ocean, extending some from the island of Hawaii in the south to northernmost ...
. They were part of a hereditary line of rulers, the ''noho aliʻi''.
The word ''aliʻi'' has a similar meaning in the
Samoan language
Samoan ( or ; ) is a Polynesian language spoken by Samoans of the Samoan Islands. Administratively, the islands are split between the sovereign country of Samoa and the United States territory of American Samoa. It is an official language, al ...
and other Polynesian languages, and in
Māori
Māori or Maori can refer to:
Relating to the Māori people
* Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group
* Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand
* Māori culture
* Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...
it is pronounced "
ariki".
Background
In
ancient Hawaii
Ancient Hawaii is the period of Hawaiian history preceding the unification in 1810 of the Kingdom of Hawaii by Kamehameha the Great. Traditionally, researchers estimated the first settlement of the Hawaiian islands as having occurred sporadicall ...
an society, the ''aliʻi'' were hereditary nobles (a social class or
caste
Caste is a form of social stratification characterised by endogamy, hereditary transmission of a style of life which often includes an occupation, ritual status in a hierarchy, and customary social interaction and exclusion based on cultur ...
).
The ''aliʻi'' consisted of the higher and lesser chiefs of the various levels on the islands.
The ''noho aliʻi'' were the
ruling chiefs.
The ''aliʻi'' were believed to be descended from the deities.
There were eleven classes of ''aliʻi'', of both men and women. These included the ''
kahuna'' (priestesses and priests, experts, craftsmen, and canoe makers) as part of four professions practiced by the nobility.
Each island had its own aliʻi nui, who governed their individual systems.
''Aliʻi'' continued to play a role in the governance of the
Hawaiian islands
The Hawaiian Islands ( haw, Nā Mokupuni o Hawai‘i) are an archipelago of eight major islands, several atolls, and numerous smaller islets in the North Pacific Ocean, extending some from the island of Hawaii in the south to northernmost ...
until 1893, when Queen
Liliʻuokalani was
overthrown by a coup d'état backed by the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
government.
''Aliʻi nui'' were ruling chiefs (in
Hawaiian, ''nui'' means grand, great, or supreme.
). The ''nui'' title could be passed on by right of birth.
Social designations of noho aliʻi (ruling line)
Samuel M. Kamakau writes extensively about the aliʻi nui and kaukaualiʻi lines and their importance to Hawaiian history.
*''Aliʻi nui'' were supreme high chiefs of an island and no others were above them (during the Kingdom period this title would come to mean "Governor"). The four largest Hawaiian islands (
Hawaiʻi proper,
Maui
The island of Maui (; Hawaiian: ) is the second-largest of the islands of the state of Hawaii at 727.2 square miles (1,883 km2) and is the 17th largest island in the United States. Maui is the largest of Maui County's four islands, whic ...
,
Kauaʻi
Kauai, () anglicized as Kauai ( ), is geologically the second-oldest of the main Hawaiian Islands (after Niʻihau). With an area of 562.3 square miles (1,456.4 km2), it is the fourth-largest of these islands and the 21st largest island ...
, and
Oʻahu
Oahu () ( Hawaiian: ''Oʻahu'' ()), also known as "The Gathering Place", is the third-largest of the Hawaiian Islands. It is home to roughly one million people—over two-thirds of the population of the U.S. state of Hawaii. The island of O� ...
) were usually ruled each by their own aliʻi nui. Molokaʻi also had a line of island rulers, but was later subjected to the superior power of nearby Maui and Oʻahu during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. ''Mōʻī'' was a special title for the highest chief of the island of Maui. Later, the title was used for all rulers of the Hawaiian Islands and the
Hawaiian monarchs
Kamehameha I established the Hawaiian Kingdom in 1795 after conquering most of the Hawaiian Islands. In 1810, Kaumualiʻi became a vassal of Kamehameha I, who therefore emerged as the sole sovereign of the island chain of Hawaiʻi. His ...
.
*''Aliʻi nui kapu'' were sacred rulers with special taboos.
*''Aliʻi Piʻo'' were a rank of chiefs who were products of
full blood sibling unions. Famous ''Piʻo'' chiefs were the royal twins,
Kameʻeiamoku and
Kamanawa.
*''Aliʻi Naha'' were a rank of chiefs who were products of half-blood sibling unions; famous ''Naha'' chiefs include
Keōpūolani.
*''Aliʻi Wohi'' were a rank of chiefs who were products of marriage of close relatives other than siblings; one famous Wohi chief was
Kamehameha I
Kamehameha I (; Kalani Paiea Wohi o Kaleikini Kealiikui Kamehameha o Iolani i Kaiwikapu kaui Ka Liholiho Kūnuiākea; – May 8 or 14, 1819), also known as Kamehameha the Great, was the conqueror and first ruler of the Kingdom of Hawaii. Th ...
. These chiefs possessed the ''kapu wohi'', exempting them from ''kapu moe'' (prostration taboo).
*''Kaukaualiʻi'' were lesser chiefs who served the aliʻi nui.
It is a relative term and not a fixed level of aliʻi nobility. The expression is elastic in terms of how it is used. In general, it means a relative who is born from a lesser ranking parent.
A kaukaualiʻi son's own children, if born of a lesser ranking aliʻi mother, would descend to a lower rank. Eventually the line descends, leading to makaʻāinana (commoner).
''Kaukaualiʻi'' gain rank through marriage with higher-ranking ''aliʻi''.
One
kaukaualiʻi line descended from
Moana Kāne, son of
Keākealanikāne
Keākealanikāne (1575 – 1635) (Hawaiian: ''Ke-ākea-lani Kāne'' "the male heavenly expanse") was an '' aliʻi nui'' of the island of Hawaiʻi (1605–1635). He was the sovereign of the Big Island. He is mentioned in chant ''Kumulipo''.
Durin ...
, became secondary aliʻi to the
Kamehameha rulers of the kingdom and were responsible for various ''hana lawelawe'' (service tasks). Members of this line married into the Kamehamehas, including
Charles Kanaʻina
Charles Kanaʻina (Kanaʻina II May 4, 1798 – March 13, 1877), was an aliʻi (hereditary noble) of the Kingdom of Hawaii, prince consort of Kuhina Nui, Kaʻahumanu III and father of William Charles Lunalilo, the 6th monarch of the Kamehameh ...
and
Kekūanāoʻa.
Some bore ''
Kāhili'', royal standards made of
feather
Feathers are epidermal growths that form a distinctive outer covering, or plumage, on both avian (bird) and some non-avian dinosaurs and other archosaurs. They are the most complex integumentary structures found in vertebrates and a premie ...
s, and were attendants of the higher-ranking ''aliʻi''.
During the monarchy some of these chiefs were elevated to positions within the primary political bodies of the Hawaiian legislature and the king's Privy Council. All Hawaiian monarchs after
Kamehameha III
Kamehameha III (born Kauikeaouli) (March 17, 1814 – December 15, 1854) was the third king of the Kingdom of Hawaii from 1825 to 1854. His full Hawaiian name is Keaweaweula Kīwalaō Kauikeaouli Kaleiopapa and then lengthened to Keaweaweula Kī ...
were the children of Kaukaualiʻi fathers who married higher ranking wives.
See also
*
Ruling chiefs of Hawaiʻi
*
Ancient Hawaiʻi
*
Kingdom of Hawaiʻi
*
Aliʻi nui of Hawaiʻi
*
Aliʻi nui of Maui
*
Aliʻi nui of Oʻahu
*
Aliʻi nui of Kauaʻi
*
List of monarchs of Tonga
*
List of monarchs of Tahiti
This is a list of monarchs of Tahiti, all of which belonged to the Pōmare dynasty. They carried the title '' Ari'i rahi''.
Monarchs of Tahiti
Family tree
Current status
In 2006, Tauatomo Mairau claimed to be the heir to the Tahitian ...
*
List of monarchs of Huahine
This is a list of monarchs of Huahine, during the Teurura'i dynasty. They carried the title ''Arii rahi'', which was translated as "King".
Monarchs of Huahine (1760–1895)
Family tree
See also
*List of monarchs of Tahiti
* List of monarchs ...
*
List of monarchs of Mangareva
References
Further reading
*
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Alii
Hawaiiana
Hawaii culture
Hawaiian nobility
Noble titles
Samoan words and phrases
Society of Samoa
Polynesian culture
Polynesian titles
Nobility of the Americas