All of the information presented in this website was collected from Hawaiian language sources, and was originally written in Hawaiian. As such, there is a considerable amount of translation that would be required to present everything in English. As a result, only a small portion of the information is currently available in English within the pages of this website. The author will provide more translations over time but a large amount of the information will remain available only in Hawaiian.

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There are numerous things that are limiting our revitalization of the knowledge of our ancestors. We are living in this technological time, and therefore, there is a need to understand technical things, however, the heart yearns for a simpler time, like the time of our ancestors. It is hoped that the knowledge within this website is helpful in understanding the various types of rainbows in the skies of Hawaiʻi. This is a small portion of the rainbow knowledge of our ancestors. Glorious and deep indeed was the traditional Hawaiian knowledge concerning rainbows. It is also hoped that children begin to speak the old words for the various types of rainbows that they are seeing.

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A thought concerning the research that is being shown in this website, many sources were researched, however, there is perhaps traditional Hawaiian rainbow knowledge that was not found for this project. Namely, the rainbow knowledge of one island is perhaps different than that of another island. Furthermore, within one island, the rainbow knowledge perhaps differs between districts. As an example, within the district of Kaupō, Maui, a small round type of rainbow was known, Pōpōua was itʻs name. It was seen every morning above the cinder cone called ʻŌʻilipuʻu on Haleakalā. Outside of Kaupō, Pōpōua is the name of a rain,[1] and within the dictionaries, it is also a rain name. Further still, not all traditional Hawaiian knowledge was published in the newspapers, and some knowledge was not shared outside of the family. Therefore, if some traditional rainbow knowledge has not been included within this website, the author is at fault.

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Dear reader, in the opinion of the author, here are some important conclusions resulting from researching this topic: 

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1. The Hawaiian and Christian/Scientific perspectives of rainbows is very different. The Hawaiian clearly understood all the types rainbows, namely, the signs, the vertical strata and the times at which the rainbows appear. The Hawaiian and the rainbow have an inseparable relationship, rainbows are a part of Hawaiian culture. For the Christian/Scientist, the rainbow is perhaps a biblical sign, however, rainbows are really just something to research and analyze in order to understand their physics. The Hawaiian perspective is not easily gained, it is deep knowledge, and the knowledge of the Hawaiian is superior in understanding the extraordinary nature of rainbows.​

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2. The understanding of the specific type of rainbow that is appearing is located within the perspective of the observer. Namely, the things that he or she was taught be their family, the island the were raised on, and the stories that were told to them.​

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3. The types of rainbows that appear as signs/omens within the various references are very important. The majority of theses signs/omens are located within the traditional Hawaiian stories and the chants within these stories.​​

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4. The times at which the types of rainbows appear is variable. In the scientific perspective, rainbows appear as a result of the proper geometry between the sun, the observer, and the rain or mist in the atmosphere. That is the only times they can appear. However, in the Hawaiian perspective, rainbows can appear at various times There are numerous examples within the traditional stories, and also witnessed by some people of the current time. 

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The information within the pages of this website was collected from the masters thesis of the author within the PDF file shown.​

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If you have questions or comments please e-mail me.

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Hoaloha Westcott:​   amw8@hawaii.edu

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[1] Communication from Kalei Nuʻuhiwa.