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Ka Lehua aʻo Kekaha

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Chant for Kauaʻi: Nani Ka Mauna Ke Kuahiwi O Waiʻaleʻale

As in many chants that express love for a place, this chant honors Kauaʻi by fondly remembering stories, recalling aliʻi (royalty) of the past, and calling out the names of cherished places and features of the land well-known (like Waiʻaleʻale) and less well-known (like Kalanipu'u).
Nani ka mauna ke kuahiwi o Waiʻaleʻale

Ke ku papu i ke kula o Hulēʻia
O Hāʻupu no kau mahalo
I ka nani o Kalanipu'u ē noho nei
Ia iʻa ka mole o ka honua
Ka poha ke kau o Ikua
E lana ai Kauaʻi o Manokalani
Ala mai o Kaula me Nīhoa
Alo mai ʻana ma ke kua o Lehua
I au ihola i ka wai o ka paoo
Ou hōʻā no iʻa i Kaulakahi
Ke hoolale maila ka naulu makani o Niʻihau

Aia kahi pae la o Waiolono
Ke ako maila Limaloa
I ka hale a ka ʻōhai
E haʻalele ʻana i ke kaha o Ainaike
Ike aku i ke kapa pili o Kahelu
Ua kupu ē ka ua a mamae ka nahele

Ka nahenahe o ke alo o ka mauu
Aohe wahi hemahema i ka lau lāʻau

Ikea iʻa ē



Beautiful is the mountain and the mountainous regions of Waiʻaleʻale
Standing like a fortress upon the plains of Hulēʻia
Hāʻupu has my admiration
In the beauty of Kalanipu'u as it is such
All the while there upon the firmament of the world
Thundering is the season of Ikua
That sets Kauaʻi of Manokalani afloat
That wakens Kaula and Nīhoa
There in the presence of the back of Lehua
While I was there by the water of the paoo
That is my companion at Kaulakahi
Rousing is the wind that brings the sudden showers of Niʻihau
There is a loud clamor of Waiolono
So Limaloa thatches
The house of the ʻōhai
Leaving Ainaike
See the blanketing of pili grass at Kahelu
That was sprouted by the rain that made the forest immaculately lovely 
The gentleness of the appearance of the grass
There is not one place that is flawed among the leafy foliage
Let it be known – there it is ...