Lono-a-Piʻilani was the '' Moʻi'' of Maui. He was a king of that Hawaiian island

David Malo David Malo or Davida Malo (1795–1853) was a chiefly counselor, a Hawaiian intellectual, educator, politician and minister. He is remembered by subsequent generations of Hawaiian people and scholars primarily as a Native Hawaiian historian of the ...

, ''Hawaiian Antiquities'',

Honolulu Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the islan ...

: Bishop Museum Press, 1951 and was named after god

Lono In Hawaiian religion, the god Lono is associated with fertility, agriculture, rainfall, music and peace. In one of the many Hawaiian stories of Lono, he is a fertility and music god who descended to Earth on a rainbow to marry Laka. In agricultu ...

Biography

Lono was a son of the King

Piʻilani Piʻilani ("ascent to heaven") (born ca. 1460) ruled as Mōʻī of the island of Maui in the later part of the 15th century. At the time Maui was an independent kingdom within the islands of Hawaii. He was the first ''Aliʻi'' to unite the i ...

and grandson of Kawaokaohele. He was a brother of

Kiha-a-Piilani Kiha-a-Piilani was an Alii nui of Maui (king of Maui). He was born ca. 1510. Kiha was a son of Piʻilani, who built great ''heiau'' (temple). Kihaʻs mother was named La’ieloheloheikawai. Shortly after Piʻilani died, Kihaʻs brother Lono-a-Piil ...

and Piʻikea and uncle of the chief Kumalae, ruler of

Hilo Hilo () is a census-designated place (CDP) and the largest settlement in Hawaii County, Hawaii, United States, which encompasses the Island of Hawaii. The population was 44,186 according to the 2020 census. It is the fourth-largest settlement i ...

. Shortly after Piʻilani died, Lono succeeded him. When Kiha had to flee from Maui, he sought refuge with his sister Piikea, wife of ʻUmi-a-Liloa, king of

Hawaiʻi Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only s ...

, at the court of ʻUmi. Here his sister advocated his cause so warmly, and insisted with ʻUmi so urgently, that the latter was induced to espouse the cause of the younger brother against the older, and prepared an expedition to invade Maui, depose Lono, and raise Kiha-a-Piilani to the throne of his father. ʻUmi summoned the chiefs of the various districts of Hawaii to prepare for the invasion of Maui. When all the preparations were ready, ʻUmi headed the expedition in person, accompanied by his wife, Piikea, and her brother and by his bravest warriors. Crossing the waters of ʻAlenuihāhā Channel between Maui and Hawaii island, the fleet of ʻUmi effected a landing at Kapueokahi, the harbour of Hāna, Maui, where Lono have continued to reside after Piilani's death. Having failed to prevent the landing of ʻUmi's forces, Lono retired to the fortress on the top of the neighbouring hill called Kauwiki, which in those days was considered almost impregnable, partly from its natural strength and partly from the superstitious terror inspired by a gigantic idol

Kawalakiʻi According to the Hawaiian mythology, Kawalakiʻi is a name of one male god, but his ancestry in the myth and the attributes are unknown. Hawaiian High Chief ʻUmi of Hāna made an idol of Kawalakiʻi on the island of Maui. King of Maui Lono bel ...

. ʻUmi laid siege to the fort of Kauwiki, and, after some delay and several unsuccessful attempts, finally captured the fort, destroyed the idol, and Lono having fallen in the battle, Kiha-a-Piilani was proclaimed and acknowledged as a king. Having accomplished this, ʻUmi and his forces returned to Hawaii.

Family

Lono married Kealana-a-waauli, a great granddaughter of Kahakuakane, ''Alii aimoku'' of Kauai, by whom he had a daughter named Kaakaupea, who became the wife of her uncle Nihokela, and mother of Piilaniwahine, the wife of Kamalalawalu. He had another daughter named Moihala, from whom descended Kapuleiolaa, one of the wives of Kanaloauoo and ancestress of Sarai Hiwauli, wife of John Papa ʻĪʻī.

References

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Abraham Fornander Abraham Fornander (November 4, 1812 – November 1, 1887) was a Swedish-born emigrant who became an important journalist, judge, and ethnologist in Hawaii. Early life and education Fornander was born in Öland, Sweden on November 4, 1812, to An ...

, ''An Account of the Polynesian Race: Its Origin and Migrations,'' Rutland, VT: Charles E. Tuttle Company, 1969 Royalty of Maui