This work was inspired by the recent recording of the song Hawaii 78 by some of the finest Hawaiian musicians and activists 40 years after it was composed by a Keaukaha teenager on Hawaiʻi island just a few miles from our hale. 100ʻs of youth from 14 schools + 40 artists recorded this song live @ 29 locations across 4 islands.

See the video HERE

Little did I know that I would see Jason Momoa (who speaks the intro) a few days later on the mauna. Mahalo to the Mana Maoli crew and all those who made this happen.

The phrase was first spoken by Kamehameha III, the King of Hawaiʻi, on July 31, 1843, when the sovereignty of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi was returned by the British. Ea means not only "life", but "breath" and, more importantly, "sovereignty".

I spoke with scholars, teachers and kūpuna such as Sam Keliʻiho'omalu, Kaleikoa Kaʻeo and Kumu Hinaleimoana Wong-Kalu about the translation I found during my research. They approve of it as a fitting and contextually accurate translation.

Some of the words contained in this phrase have greater, more difficult to define meaning than is commonly ascribed. Mau, for example, implies an unending continuation; Ea means not only "life", but "breath" and, more importantly, "sovereignty". It is disputed that the word ea in this pronouncement refers to "life." Many now insist strongly that ea refers specifically to sovereignty because of the circumstances at the time Kamehameha III uttered it.

Learn more about the phrase.

Learn more about the song.

Lā Hoʻihoʻi Ea, literally the day sovereignty was restored, was a holiday celebrated in the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi. Modern observations of this day include ceremonies taking place at different sites around Hawaiʻi, including a key commemoration at Thomas Square in Honolulu.

The following is a narrative of the events that brought about this important day.

In the year 1825, Richard Charlton arrived in Hawai‘i to assume the newly-created position of British ambassador to the islands. Fifteen years later, in 1840, his false claim to a parcel of land sparked the “Paulet Episode,” causing the forced cession and restoration of the sovereignty of the Hawaiian Islands.

To substantiate his claim, Charlton submitted to Kauikeaouli, King Kamehameha III, what he asserted to be a 299-year lease for the land in question. This land was not his personal residence, Wailele, but an adjoining parcel named Pūlaholaho which was occupied by the retainers and heirs of Ka‘ahumanu. Charlton attested that it was granted to him by Kalanimoku in 1826.

Kamehameha III rejected the claim, citing the fact that Kalanimoku, then kuhina nui or prime minister of the Hawaiian Kingdom, did not have the authority in 1826 to grant the lease. At that time, Ka‘ahumanu was kuhina nui, and only she and the king had the power to execute such grants.

Nearly two years after his claim was rejected, Charlton prepared to return to England to further press his case against the Hawaiian government.

Before taking leave, he appointed Alexander Simpson to assume the role of “acting consul” in his stead. Simpson was a Hudson’s Bay Company trader stationed in Honolulu. The Hawaiian government, however, never recognized Simpson as the legitimate replacement for Consul Charlton.

Charlton set sail in September of 1842. Lord George Paulet, a captain in the British Navy, was in Mexico when Charlton arrived there en route to London. Having Paulet’s audience, Charlton voiced his complaints about the mistreatment he and other British subjects had received in Hawai‘i and promoted the idea of annexing the islands to the crown.

When Charlton’s story reached the ears of Rear Admiral Richard Thomas, a commander of British naval forces in the Pacific, Captain Paulet was sent to investigate the incident. He landed in Honolulu on February 10, 1843.

Paulet was quite set on the idea that Hawai‘i was his for the taking. He swiftly implemented the era’s commonplace diplomatic practice of gun-boat diplomacy, which forced the kingdom under duress via threat of violence. On February 25, 1843, Kamehameha III ceded Hawai‘i under protest and appeal to the queen of Britain.

One of Paulet’s earliest orders following the cession-under-protest ceremony in Honolulu was for all of the Hawaiian flags to be collected and destroyed.

Meanwhile, months before this British occupation commenced, Kamehameha III had sent his own diplomatic envoys abroad to secure international recognition of Hawai‘i as an independent nation. By mid-1843, the United States had already given their formal support and France their verbal assurance.

Admiral Thomas, after hearing conflicting reports about the situation in the islands, entered Honolulu harbor on July 26 and immediately requested an interview with the king. Edmund James Carpenter described the scene in his book, “America in Hawaii.”

“This officer brought the agreeable news that the act of Lord George Paulet had been disavowed and the deed of cession repudiated, and by open declaration he announced that he does not accept of the provisional cession of the Hawaiian Islands made on the twenty fifth day of February 1843 but that he considers His Majesty Kamehameha III the legitimate king of those Islands and he assures His Majesty that the sentiments of his sovereign toward him are those of unvarying friendship and esteem that Her Majesty sincerely desires King Kamehameha to be treated as an independent sovereign leaving the administration of justice in his own hands the faithful discharge of which will promote his happiness and the prosperity of his dominions. The flag of the Hawaiian monarchy was then restored to its place the British flag removed and the episode ended.”

On July 31, 1843, Thomas officially restored the sovereignty of the Hawaiian Islands to Kamehameha III. The Union Jack was lowered and the hae Hawai‘i raised during a historic ceremony in Honolulu. The location of this event is known today as Thomas Square and was dedicated in honor of Admiral Thomas and this pivotal moment in Hawaiian history.

This day was celebrated as a national holiday in the Hawaiian Kingdom for the next 50 years and is known as Lā Ho‘iho‘i Ea, Restoration Day, literally the day sovereignty was restored.