Laakona

Laʻakona or sometimes incorrectly Lakona of Ewa, a Prince of Oahu, was the District Chieftain or King of Ewa on Oahu. During his days, Oahu was divided among the descendants of Maweke, a legendary blue blood alii from which the Northern royal bloodlines sprouted.

Laakona was the grandson of Maweke of Oahu; being son of one of his sons Keaunui of Ewa. His mother is thought to be Wehelani, the same name of his uncle's, Mulielealii, spouse. It isn't known if these were the same person. His siblings include Nuakea, a sister, and Moi, a brother. His sister would become the Queen consort of Molokai, as the wife of Keoloewa. And his brother would became a Molokaian kaula or prophet under the service of Keoloewa's brother, Kaupeepee.^[1][2] His first cousins were Kumuhonua, Moikeha, Olopana, Hainakolo, and Hinakaimauliawa.

He solely inherited the Ewa District from Keaunui, his father, since his other siblings were in Molokai. Technically he was a vassal of Kumuhonua, the King of Oahu and his successor Elepuukahonua, but the power of the Oahuan monarchy was not yet stable or united. He was known to be a powerful and great chief,who probably continued in his father's work on the Puuloa saltworks; widening it and deepening it, allowing canoes and larger vessels to pass through.^[3] Ewa was known as one of the most properous section of Oahu in his days and was probably much densely populated that the rest of Oahu.^[4]

He was the great progneitor of the Ewa Chieftains, who would attribute to the greatness and the downfall of Kingdom of Oahu in later days. Laakona has the characteristic honour among the Hawaiians of having had his name affixed as a sobriquet to the district over which he ruled, and in epical and diplomatic language it was ever after known as ʻEwa-a-Laʻakona. As can be seen in the Chant of Kualii verse 240: Na Ewa Nui a Laakona (The Great Ewa (land) of Laakona);^[5][6] and a saying about the nehu fish: "The sea that blows up the nehu fish, the sea of Ewa that blows them up in rows until they rest in the calm — great Ewa of La'akona."^[7]

His son was Ewauli-a-Laakona who succeeded him as Chief of Ewa.^[8]

Footnotes

References

• Fornander, Abraham; Stokes, John F. G. (1880), An Account of the Polynesian Race, Trubner & co., http://books.google.com/books?id=tcQNAAAAQAAJ&ie=ISO-8859-1 .
• Pukui, Mary (1983), Olelo No'eau, Bishop Museum Press, ISBN 0910240914, http://books.google.com/books?id=9icgaVjhcs4C&q=la'akona&dq=la'akona&ie=ISO-8859-1&output=html&pgis=1 .
• Titcomb, Margaret; Pukui, Mary (1982), Native Use of Fish in Hawaii, University of Hawaii Press, ISBN 0824805925, http://books.google.com/books?id=aj6soKpGouwC&ie=ISO-8859-1&output=html .
• McKinzie, Edith K.; Stagner, Ishmael W. (1983), Hawaiian Genealogies: Extracted from Hawaiian Language Newspapers, University of Hawaii Press, ISBN 0939154374, http://books.google.com/books?id=QB92bdJ8igwC&output=html .