Ka Pōʻai Ānuenue Piha
(The Full Circle Rainbow)
There is no specific definition in the dictionaries for this type of rainbow, however, each and every arching rainbow is a circle. The observer needs to climb to a very high location as a way to see the circular rainbow. According to the Hawaiian-English dictionaries, this is the definition o the arching rainbow:
Pukui/Elbert: 1. nvs., Arch, arc; bent, arched, curved; to arch, of a rainbow
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Unverified Photos: These photos demonstrate this type of rainbow based on the authorʻs understanding of the dictionary definitions, context within some Hawaiian legends, newspaper articles, and Hawaiian language recordings. They are not definitive.
Signs and omens
This type of beautiful rainbow is not often seen in Hawaiʻi. It can be a sign or omen for a variety of things as described below:
When does it appear
There is one story/legend in the Hawaiian language newspapers that contains the full circular rainbow. In this story/legend the circular rainbow appears at the time a magical horse was flying. According to this story/legend:
The horse flew here and there, and 2 feet above the roof of the house the height (he flew). He soared around the town, with the bird flocks that were circling above, inside the circular rainbow racetrack. There were shouts and cries and this magical thing just departed, and numerous were the debates between some people, and it was said by them of Debolo, and some people said, an angel from heaven...
Photo by: LunarCat | Picfair.com