Unique Design
We do not know exactly what the voyaging canoes that carried the first settlers to Hawaiʻi looked like. However, archaeological and ethnographic evidence suggests that long-distance voyaging between Hawaiʻi and islands to the south may have continued from about AD 1100 to 1300. Over time, possibly because of changing climatic and social conditions, this two-way voyaging declined and eventually appears to have ceased. During the long period of relative isolation that followed, the Hawaiian canoe gradually developed into the distinctive form known today.
Unlike many islands of the South Pacific, most Hawaiian coastlines lack protective barrier reefs. As a result, Hawaiian canoes must contend directly with the powerful ocean swells of the North Pacific.
The prevailing moaʻe, or northeast trade winds, generally blow from the northeast toward the southwest across the Hawaiian Islands, often making west-to-east sailing particularly difficult. These winds, the powerful ocean swells, and the relatively short distances between islands influenced the development of the Hawaiian canoe.
Compared with many long-distance voyaging canoes elsewhere in Polynesia, the traditional Hawaiian canoe developed primarily as a paddling vessel, with a sail providing additional propulsion when conditions permitted.
Unique Hawaiian Design Features
Early European explorers described the Hawaiian canoe as lacking the ornamentation that was common in the canoes of the South Pacific. They marveled at the workmanship of Hawaiian canoes, comparing it with that of the finest woodworkers in Europe.
Below are the characteristics that distinguish the Hawaiian canoe from other Pacific Island canoes. Although each characteristic is not necessarily unique to Hawaiʻi, together they create a distinctive design found nowhere else.
Ka'ele: The Hull
Kupe: Bow and Stern End Covers
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The traditional hull was hollowed out of a single large log. The hull is U-shaped, without a pronounced keel. The bow and stern are narrow, tapered, and generally rounded. The hull is widest just aft of its center. There is frequently a bulge in the lower section of the hull, giving it a calabash-like shape. The rounded hull is designed to glide over rough, choppy seas and to pass through breaking surf during launching and landing.
The Mua (bow) and Hope (stern) of traditional Hawaiian canoes were covered with finely carved end pieces called Kupe. The Kupe help prevent water from spilling into the hull while underway. Each Kupe is finished with an upturned end called the Manu. The forward Manu helps the canoe rise over oncoming waves, while the stern Manu helps deflect following waves that might otherwise spill into the hull.
Ama:
Outrigger Float
'Iako:
Outrigger Booms
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The ama was traditionally constructed from a single piece of wood. The Hawaiian ama is gently curved, with both the Lupe (forward end) and the Kanaka (rear end) rising out of the water. This curved shape, along with the uniquely shaped Lupe, makes the Hawaiian ama distinctive. The Lupe is carved to form a cutwater, which reduces drag when traveling in heavy seas. The Kanaka is usually flattened on top and rounded on the underside.
The preferred wood for the ama was the native wiliwili. If wiliwili was not available, hau was used.
The ʻiako are the curved booms that connect the ama (outrigger float) to the kaʻele (hull) of a waʻa kaukahi (single-outrigger canoe). The ʻiako were usually made from hau, a hibiscus long used by Hawaiians in canoe construction.
The ʻiako also serve as crossbeams connecting the two hulls of a waʻa kaulua (double-hulled canoe).
On the waʻa kaukahi, the two ʻiako extend outward from the left (port) side of the kaʻele. Ideally, each ʻiako arches outward from the hull and then curves downward to connect directly to the ama. Hawaiʻi is one of the few places in the Pacific where both ʻiako are attached directly to the ama.
In many other Pacific Island canoe designs, the ʻiako are connected indirectly to the ama through smaller connecting pieces.
Wae: Spreader
Prior to the introduction of metal tools in the late 1700s, the Kupe was made in two pieces that were then lashed together. After the introduction of metal tools, the Kupe was carved in one piece.
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The wae are U-shaped or V-shaped wooden braces that span the inside of the hull and serve as attachment points for lashing the ʻiako to the hull. The wae also strengthen the sides of the hull and help distribute the twisting forces (torque) encountered in rough seas throughout the hull, rather than concentrating stress at the lashing holes in the gunwales.
Pe'a: Sail
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The traditional Hawaiian sail is a specialized form of Oceanic spritsail called a “crab-claw” sail. Roughly triangular in shape, with its apex near the base of the mast, the sail has a distinctive U-shaped curve along its upper edge. This curved upper section may function as a kind of safety valve, allowing wind to spill over the top of the sail during strong gusts, potentially reducing the force that could capsize the canoe.
Maku'u/Moamoa:
No English Term
The moamoa is a pointed extension of the kaʻele (hull) that projects beyond the kupe hope (stern cover). Traditionally, it was considered the place where an ʻaumakua (ancestral guardian spirit) rode when the canoe put out to sea.
During the initial shaping of the canoe log, knobs called makuʻu were left at the bow and stern for attaching the ropes used to haul the log from the forest. During the final construction of the hull, the bow knob was removed, while the stern makuʻu was refined into a pointed projection known as the moamoa.
Kūanuenue:
Lapuila
'Iako for a Wa'a Kaulua
The ʻiako of the waʻa kaulua (double-hulled canoe), also called kuānuenue or lapauila, are arched, allowing the pola (platform) between the hulls to ride high above the waves. Often made from ʻōhiʻa, the ʻiako were finely carved and fitted to the wae of the canoe. Smaller double canoes could have two ʻiako, while larger canoes could have as many as eight.
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Mo'o: Gunwale
Nohoana: Seat
The moʻo are planks attached to the upper edges of the kaʻele (hull). These gunwale strakes increase the freeboard of the canoe and protect the nīao, or upper edge of the hull, from daily wear and tear caused by paddles, fishing lines, and nets.
The moʻo were seldom made from koa, the wood commonly used to construct the hull. Instead, other woods such as ʻahakea, kāwaʻu, and ʻulu were used. The traditional method of fitting and lashing the moʻo to the kaʻele is a distinctive feature of Hawaiian canoe construction.
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Canoe seats were elevated above the bottom of the hull and supported by small shelves carved into the sides of the hull, called pepeiao. This arrangement allowed the paddler to tuck one foot beneath the seat, providing greater leverage while paddling.
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Types Of Hawaiian Canoes
Wa'a Kaukahi
Wa'a Kaulua
At the time of first contact with Westerners, Hawaiians had two principal types of canoes. Both shared the same basic hull design, with the primary difference being the number of hulls. The waʻa kaukahi had a single hull stabilized by an outrigger float called an ama. The waʻa kaulua was a double-hulled canoe, consisting of two hulls connected by crossbeams.
Generally, the waʻa kaukahi were smaller than the waʻa kaulua, ranging from approximately 18 to 35 feet in length. The waʻa kaulua observed by Westerners ranged from about 30 feet to more than 60 feet in length. One exceptionally large canoe hull was reportedly 107 feet long and 5 feet deep.
