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| ʻOhana | |
|---|---|
| Name | ʻOhana |
| Native name | ʻOhana |
| Settlement type | Concept |
| Country | Hawaiʻi |
ʻOhana is a Hawaiian term denoting extended family relationships, kinship obligations, and communal support networks central to Hawaiian social organization. The concept has been invoked in scholarship, legislation, communal practice, and popular culture, influencing discussions in Native Hawaiian people studies, Hawaiian language revitalization, and Indigenous rights movements. ʻOhana informs interactions among individuals during events such as Merrie Monarch Festival, Hoʻolauleʻa, and community responses to disasters like Hurricane Iniki.
The linguistic roots of ʻOhana are traced in studies by scholars associated with University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum, and Hawaiian Language ʻAha Pūnana Leo immersion programs, with etymological comparisons drawn to words in Māori language, Samoan language, and Tahitian language. Philologists reference early accounts from Captain James Cook’s voyages, journals of William Ellis (missionary), and dictionaries compiled by Samuel Kamakau, David Malo, and Lorrin Andrews. Modern lexicographers at ʻIolani Palace archives and contributors to Hawaiian Dictionary (Pukui & Elbert) situate ʻohana within genealogical terminology that intersects with ʻohana-related terms recorded by King Kamehameha I’s court chroniclers.
ʻOhana functions as a normative axis in ceremonies at sites like Puʻuhonua o Hōnaunau, ritual practices preserved by practitioners such as members of Kumu Hula lineages, and communal stewardship exemplified by ahupuaʻa management. Cultural organizations including Hoʻokipa Cultural Center, Hawaiian Civic Club, and Office of Hawaiian Affairs engage ʻohana frameworks when addressing issues involving descendants of Kamehameha dynasty families, participants in hānai adoption practices, and communities impacted by Mauna Kea activism. The notion shapes kin-based alliances visible in genealogies recorded by Mōʻī', genealogists working with Hawaiian Mission Children's Society, and cultural resurgence initiatives linked to Hula and Hoʻoluʻuluʻu gatherings.
Traditional ʻohana includes multi-generational households resembling arrangements described in accounts of King Kalākaua’s era, with roles documented by ethnographers collaborating with American Anthropological Association projects and researchers at Bishop Museum. Roles within ʻohana encompass elder responsibilities parallel to concepts recognized by Kupuna organizations, childcare practices similar to those in hānai customs recorded by Julia F. Andrews-era scholars, and economic cooperation found in family enterprises such as taro cultivation linked to Kalo taro patches stewarded under lineage claims resembling those adjudicated in cases before the Hawaiʻi Supreme Court.
Legal recognition of ʻohana appears in deliberations by the Hawaiʻi State Legislature, rulings by the U.S. District Court for the District of Hawaiʻi, and policy instruments administered by the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands and Office of Hawaiian Affairs. Statutes and administrative rules intersect with ʻohana principles in programs run by Department of Human Services (Hawaiʻi), housing initiatives in collaboration with HUD offices, and family law matters adjudicated in First Circuit Court (Hawaiʻi). Advocacy groups such as Native Hawaiian Legal Corporation and Hawaiian Legal Corporation have invoked ʻohana concepts in litigation related to land claims, beneficiary rights, and cultural use disputes that reached attention from entities like the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights.
ʻOhana has been depicted in works broadcast or produced in Hawaiʻi and elsewhere, including narratives by filmmakers connected to ʻAloha ʻAina Film Festival, television productions supported by Hawaii Five-0 (1968 TV series), and streaming projects featuring artists from Nā Hōkū Hanohano-nominated circles. Authors publishing with Bess Press, playwrights staging works at Diamond Head Theatre, and musicians performing at venues like Waikīkī Shell have incorporated ʻohana themes into novels, plays, and songs; journalists at Honolulu Star-Advertiser and documentarians collaborating with PBSʻs Long Story Short have explored its contemporary resonances. Popular references have also appeared in franchises and licensed media associated with companies collaborating with Paramount Pictures-distributed productions set in Hawaiʻi.
Scholars compare ʻohana with kinship systems in the Polynesian Triangle, citing parallels in Māori whānau, Samoan aiga, Tongan ʻapiʻ, and Rapanui practices examined by comparative anthropologists linked to institutions such as Oxford University and University of Auckland. Transnational indigenous networks including members of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues and scholars affiliated with Society for Applied Anthropology analyze how ʻohana-informed models influence community-based resource management in contexts from Aotearoa to Guam. NGOs like Surfrider Foundation chapters and cultural nonprofits operating in Pacific constituencies have adapted ʻohana principles in community resilience programs following events like 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami and regional climate initiatives coordinated with Secretariat of the Pacific Community.
Category:Hawaiian culture