The Hawaiian Romance of Laieikawai

S. N. Hale'ole (1819-1866) was a Native Hawaiian writer and historian. Born at a time of monumental change in the Kingdom of Hawaii, Hale'ole was among the first generation of Hawaiians to be educated by American missionaries. He attended Lahainaluna Seminary from 1834 to 1838, studying ancient Hawaiian history under Lorrin Andrews and Sheldon Dibble. After graduation, Hale'ole worked as a teacher in Haiku, Maui, before embarking on a career as a writer and editor. In the last decade of his life, Hale'ole dedicated himself to writing The Hawaiian Romance of Laieikawai (1863), a story based on songs from the Hawaiian oral tradition. Upon publication, it became the first work of literature from a Native Hawaiian, securing Hale'ole's status as a leading intellectual among his people and bringing the story of Hawaii to the world stage.