Cultural matriarch Nālani Kanakaʻole died peacefully in Hilo on Jan. 3 at age 79.

Born Faith Nalani Kanakaʻole on March 19, 1946, in Keaukaha, Hilo, Kanakaʻole was raised in a traditional Hawaiian household on homestead lands.

The youngest daughter of Edith Kanakaʻole, Kanakaʻole began her training in hula at age 3 under her grandmother, Mary Kekuewa Kanaele Fujii, and later under her mother.

She started teaching at age 14 and devoted nearly seven decades to transmitting cultural knowledge through strict, time-honored methods that emphasized simultaneous mastery of mele oli (chanted poetry) and vigorous ‘aihaʻa-style dance.

Kanakaʻole co-led Hālau o Kekuhi with her sister, Loea Hula Pualani Kanakaʻole Kanahele, and later with her niece, Huihui Kanahele-Mossman.

In 1993, Kanakaʻole and her sister were jointly named National Heritage Fellows by the National Endowment for the Arts, the nation’s highest honor in the folk and traditional arts, in recognition of their lifelong commitment to preserving indigenous Hawaiian chant and dance.

Kanakaʻole also co-founded Sig Zane Designs in 1985 with her husband, Sig Zane. The company blends wearable art with cultural education, featuring designs inspired by native Hawaiian plants, moʻolelo and symbols.

She is survived by her husband, Sigmund Zane; son, Kūhaʻoʻīmaikalani Zane (Shaelene Kamakaʻala), grandchildren, Loliʻi Kamakaʻala Barron and Nāholowaʻa Zane; sister, Pualani Kanakaʻole Kanahele; niece and co-kumu hula, Huihui Kanahele-Mossman; and the extended Kanakaʻole, Kanahele and Zane ʻohana, along with countless students and practitioners throughout the world who carry her teachings.

Details on memorial services are pending and will be announced at the appropriate time.

 

 

Photo credit: ʻOhana Zane