Iolani Luahine
| ʻIolani Luahine | |
|---|---|
Iolani Luahine, photograph from The Honolulu Advertiser
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| Born |
January 31, 1915 Honaunau-Napoopoo, Hawaii, United States |
| Died | December 10, 1978 (aged 63) Hawaiʻi |
| Nationality | United States |
| Other names | Harriet Lanihau Makekau |
| Occupation | Kumu hula, dancer, chanter and teacher |
| Known for | High priestess of the ancient hula |
ʻIolani Luahine (January 31, 1915 – December 10, 1978), born Harriet Lanihau Makekau, was a native Hawaiian kumu hula, dancer, chanter and teacher, who was considered the high priestess of the ancient hula. The New York Times wrote that she was "regarded as Hawaii's last great exponent of the sacred hula ceremony," and the Honolulu Advertiser wrote: "In her ancient dances, she was the poet of the Hawaiian people." The ʻIolani Luahine Hula Festival was established in her memory, and awards a scholarship award each year to encourage a student to continue the study of hula.
Luahine was born in 1915 in the village of Nāpoʻopo'o, near Captain Cook, Hawaii. Her given name was Harriet Lanihau Makekau, and she was the youngest of five daughters in a pure Hawaiian family that traced its genealogy to dancers and keepers of ancient Hawaiian rituals and chants. Iolani was raised by her great aunt Julia Keahi Luahine (1877–1937), who began educating her in the ancient Kauai school of hula when she was four years old. Her aunt Keahi was "the foremost hula instructor of her day and one of the last royal dancers from King Kalākaua's and Queen Lili’uokalani's court." When she was a child, she was afflicted with an illness in her eyes, and a kahuna nui (seer) said she had to be renamed Iolani, heavenly, or royal hawk, after the `io, native Hawaiian hawk. Her eyesight reportedly cleared shortly after her name was changed. Iolani attended the Kamehameha Schools, but her aunt removed her after learning that dancing hula was forbidden by the "missionary" institution. After leaving the Kamehameha Schools, Luahine attended St. Andrew's Priory, at St. Andrew’s Cathedral, where hula dancing was permitted. Iolani later attended the University of Hawaii where she began hula classes with Mary Kawena Pukui. As Iolani's mentor, Pukui steered her away from the commercialized hula forms popularized by Hollywood films.
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