top of page

Fishponds

To a foreigner, the Kawai Nui Marsh located in Kailua, Oʻahu is a nice place to go for a walk and enjoy the lush scenery. The history of the land, however, goes much deeper than just what is visible today.

To offer some context, we’ll need to go back to the 1750’s, when Kawai Nui was a fertile fishpond, growing an “abundance of mullet, awa, and oʻopu.”[1] Kailua was a place of high interest for chiefs because of the fish as well as good canoe landings. There were also many kahuna, or priests, who frequently managed religious ceremonies at heiaus at Kawai Nui as well as spirits who protected and maintained an abundance of fish such as Hauwahine. This cultural history plays an important role in the ecosystem as well as spirituality of the marsh, and is essential in helping us understand the importance of the relationship between people and their land.

 

Written by Meaghan Bachop

November 26, 2017

Also at this time, oral stories tell us that the water from the upstream “loʻi, flowed into the fishpond”[2] and the fish grew “fat and happy.”[3] The fish were so plentiful that they were compared to the stars in the sky. The story narrates that while for a time everyone was happy and healthy, things soon began to change. Laziness, greed and selfishness overcame the fishpond keepers and the fishpond became overgrown with limu so that it hid the fish, preventing them from being caught. The arrival of a new konohiki, or ruler, arranged for the people of Kailua to come and help clean Kawai Nui in return for a party and fish to take home. One particular worker, Kahinihiniʻula, was wronged however because he was too little to be noticed and was not given his reward. Kahinihiniʻula was then gifted a special branch from his grandmother that helped lured all of the fish out of Kawai Nui and to his home. Once the konohiki and fishpond keepers realised the mistake that had been made, they apologized and forgivness was given by Kahinihiniʻula and finally the fish returned to Kawai Nui. This story hints at many important metaphors and culturally important morals that are associated with Kawai Nui. The place itself respresents a community that places a high emphasis on aspects such as sharing, forgiveness, respect for the land, responsibility, and working together.

Fast forward years later, and development plans had been in the works to dismantel the fishpond from its natural state to one of buildings and infrastrucutre. It was because of hard work and the continuous connection between the Hawaiian people and their land that in 2008 “ownership of Kawai Nui Marsh [was] transferred from the C&C to the State and placed under the jurisdiction of DLNR.”[4] Meaning the protection of Kawai Nui from development. Since then, there have been ongoing projects and plans to help restore and build Kawai Nui’s birds and fish such as the “Wetland Resoration and Habitat Enhancement Plan”, the signing of the partnership between the DLNR and the US Army Coprs of Engineers to create terraced pond cells, and multiple ongoing community service projects to “protect and enhance the native cultural and natural heritage of Kawai Nui and Hāmākua wetlands.”[5]

bottom of page