Lanai
Encyclopedia
Lānai or Lanai is the sixth-largest of the Hawaiian Islands
. It is also known as the Pineapple Island because of its past as an island
-wide pineapple
plantation
. The only town is Lānai City
, a small settlement.
The island is somewhat comma-shaped, with a width of 18 miles (29 km) in the longest direction. The land area is 140.5 square miles (363.9 km²), making it the 42nd largest island in the United States. It is separated from the island of Molokai
by the Kalohi Channel
to the north, and from Maui
by the Auau Channel
to the east. The United States Census Bureau
defines Lānai as Census Tract
316 of Maui County
. Its total population shrank from 3,193 as of the 2000 census
to 3,102 as of 2010. Many of the island's landmarks and sites are reached by dirt roads that require four-wheel drive
a vehicle.
There is one school, Lanai High and Elementary School
, serving the entire island from Kindergarten through Senior in high school. There are no traffic lights on the entire island.
throughout before recorded history. Its first inhabitants may have arrived as late as the 15th century.
The name Lānai is of uncertain origin, but the island has historically been called Lānai o Kauluāau. One theory is that the phrase means "day of the conquest of Kauluāau."
The first people to migrate here, most likely from Maui and Molokai, probably established fishing villages along the coast initially but later branched out into the interior where they raised taro
in the fertile volcanic
soil
. During most of those times, the Moi of Maui held dominion over Lānai, but generally left the people of Lānai to their own devices. Life on Lānai remained relatively calm until King Kamehameha I
or Kalaniōpuu-a-Kaiamamao took control, slaughtering people on every part of the island. So many were killed that when Captain
George Vancouver
sailed past the island in 1792, he didn't bother to land because of Lānai's apparent lack of villages and population. It is mentioned that Lānai was Kamehameha's favorite fishing spot across Hawaii's main eight islands.
Lānai was first seen by Europeans on February 25, 1779, when Captain Charles Clerke
sighted the island from aboard James Cook
's HMS Resolution
. Clerke had taken command of the ship after Cook was killed at Kealakekua Bay
on February 14 and was leaving the islands for the North Pacific
.
By the 1870s, Walter M. Gibson
had acquired most of the land on the island for ranching. Prior to this he had used it as a Mormon
colony. In 1899, his daughter and son-in-law formed Maunalei Sugar Company, headquartered in Keomuku on the windward coast downstream from Maunalei Valley. However the company lasted only until 1901. Nevertheless, many Native Hawaiians
continued to live along the less arid windward coast, supporting themselves by ranching and fishing
until pineapples displaced ranching.
In 1922, James Dole
, the president of Hawaiian Pineapple Company (later renamed Dole Food Company
), bought the entire island of Lānai and developed a large portion of it into the world's largest pineapple
plantation
.
With statehood, Lānai became part of the County of Maui
.
In 1985, Lānai passed into the control of David H. Murdock
, as a result of his purchase of Castle & Cooke
.
, man-eating spirits occupied the island before that time. For generations, Maui chiefs believed in these man-eating spirits. Differing legends say that either the prophet Lanikāula drove the spirits from the island or the unruly Maui prince Kauluāau accomplished that heroic feat. The more popular myth is that the mischievous Kauluāau pulled up every ulu (Artocarpus altilis
) tree he could find on Maui. Finally his father, Kakaalaneo
had to banish him to Lānai, expecting him not to survive in that hostile place. However Kauluāau outwitted the spirits and drive them from the island. The chief looked across the channel from Maui and saw that his son's fire continued to burn nightly on the shore, and he sent a canoe to Lānai to bring the prince, redeemed by his courage and his cleverness, back home to Maui. As a reward, Kakaalaneo gave Kauluāau control of the island and encouraged emigration from other islands. Kauluāau had, in the meantime, pulled up all the ulu trees on Lānai, accounting for the historic lack of ulu on that island.
s, starting in the northwest of the island.
Kamoku hosts the largest share of population, because the bigger part of Lānai City
falls into it. Parts of Lanaʻi City stretch to Kaa and Paomai. As of 2010, the remaining ahupuaʻa were virtually uninhabited. According to the census of 2000, Lanaʻi City accounts for 99 percent of the island population (3164 of 3193). As a census designated place, Lanaʻi City is defined solely for statistical purposes, and not by administrative boundaries.
on Lānai began to be prominent in more recent history as the pineapple and sugarcane
industries were phased out in the islands.
As of 2011, the two resort
hotel
s on Lānai were managed by Four Seasons Hotels
; the Four Seasons Resort Lanai
and the Lodge at Kōʻele. The Hotel Lānai in Lānai City was built in 1923 by James Dole
of the Hawaiian Pineapple Company
as a lodge to house the executives overseeing the island’s pineapple production. It was the island’s only hotel until 1990.
Lānai is also home to two golf courses, one at each Four Seasons resort. "The Challenge at Manele" borders the ocean and was designed by Jack Nicklaus
. "The Experience at Koele" is located in the mountains of Lānai and was designed by Greg Norman
. Bill Gates
was married on the 12th hole tee-box at The Challenge at Manele.
In Lānai City, there are no traffic lights, no shopping malls, and public transportation is supplied by a hotel contractor. For a one-time fee, hotel guests enjoy unlimited rides on small and large buses that go between the hotels and the ferry landing on Manele Bay. Bicycles and off-road vehicles are for rent. Most attractions outside of the hotels and town can be visited only via dirt roads that require an off-road vehicle.
Hawaiian Islands
The Hawaiian Islands are an archipelago of eight major islands, several atolls, numerous smaller islets, and undersea seamounts in the North Pacific Ocean, extending some 1,500 miles from the island of Hawaii in the south to northernmost Kure Atoll...
. It is also known as the Pineapple Island because of its past as an island
Island
An island or isle is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, cays or keys. An island in a river or lake may be called an eyot , or holm...
-wide pineapple
Pineapple
Pineapple is the common name for a tropical plant and its edible fruit, which is actually a multiple fruit consisting of coalesced berries. It was given the name pineapple due to its resemblance to a pine cone. The pineapple is by far the most economically important plant in the Bromeliaceae...
plantation
Plantation
A plantation is a long artificially established forest, farm or estate, where crops are grown for sale, often in distant markets rather than for local on-site consumption...
. The only town is Lānai City
Lana'i City, Hawai'i
Lanai City is a census-designated place on the island of Lanai, in Maui County, Hawaii, United States. The population was 3,164 at the 2000 census. Because of the island of Lanai's small population, Lanai City functions as the island's main commerce and business area...
, a small settlement.
The island is somewhat comma-shaped, with a width of 18 miles (29 km) in the longest direction. The land area is 140.5 square miles (363.9 km²), making it the 42nd largest island in the United States. It is separated from the island of Molokai
Molokai
Molokai or Molokai is an island in the Hawaiian archipelago. It is 38 by 10 miles in size with a land area of , making it the fifth largest of the main Hawaiian Islands and the 27th largest island in the United States. It lies east of Oahu across the 25-mile wide Kaiwi Channel and north of...
by the Kalohi Channel
Hawaiian islands channels
In an archipelago like the Hawaiian Islands the water between islands is typically called a channel or passage. Described here are the channels between the islands of Hawaii, arranged from southeast to northwest.- Alenuihāhā Channel :...
to the north, and from Maui
Maui
The island of Maui is the second-largest of the Hawaiian Islands at and is the 17th largest island in the United States. Maui is part of the state of Hawaii and is the largest of Maui County's four islands, bigger than Lānai, Kahoolawe, and Molokai. In 2010, Maui had a population of 144,444,...
by the Auau Channel
Hawaiian islands channels
In an archipelago like the Hawaiian Islands the water between islands is typically called a channel or passage. Described here are the channels between the islands of Hawaii, arranged from southeast to northwest.- Alenuihāhā Channel :...
to the east. The United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
defines Lānai as Census Tract
Census tract
A census tract, census area, or census district is a geographic region defined for the purpose of taking a census. Usually these coincide with the limits of cities, towns or other administrative areas and several tracts commonly exist within a county...
316 of Maui County
Maui County, Hawaii
-National protected areas:* Haleakala National Park* Kakahaia National Wildlife Refuge* Kealia Pond National Wildlife Refuge- Demographics :As of the 2000 Census, there were 128,094 people, 43,507 households, and 29,889 families residing in the county. The population density was 110 people per...
. Its total population shrank from 3,193 as of the 2000 census
United States Census, 2000
The Twenty-second United States Census, known as Census 2000 and conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2% over the 248,709,873 persons enumerated during the 1990 Census...
to 3,102 as of 2010. Many of the island's landmarks and sites are reached by dirt roads that require four-wheel drive
Four-wheel drive
Four-wheel drive, 4WD, or 4×4 is a four-wheeled vehicle with a drivetrain that allows all four wheels to receive torque from the engine simultaneously...
a vehicle.
There is one school, Lanai High and Elementary School
Lanai High and Elementary School
Lanai High and Elementary School is located on the island of Lanai in the U.S. state of Hawaii. It is the largest of six K-12 public schools in the Hawaii State Department of Education system. Lanai High and Elementary School is the only school on the island located in the heart of Lanai City,...
, serving the entire island from Kindergarten through Senior in high school. There are no traffic lights on the entire island.
History
Lānai was under the control of nearby MauiMaui
The island of Maui is the second-largest of the Hawaiian Islands at and is the 17th largest island in the United States. Maui is part of the state of Hawaii and is the largest of Maui County's four islands, bigger than Lānai, Kahoolawe, and Molokai. In 2010, Maui had a population of 144,444,...
throughout before recorded history. Its first inhabitants may have arrived as late as the 15th century.
The name Lānai is of uncertain origin, but the island has historically been called Lānai o Kauluāau. One theory is that the phrase means "day of the conquest of Kauluāau."
The first people to migrate here, most likely from Maui and Molokai, probably established fishing villages along the coast initially but later branched out into the interior where they raised taro
Taro
Taro is a common name for the corms and tubers of several plants in the family Araceae . Of these, Colocasia esculenta is the most widely cultivated, and is the subject of this article. More specifically, this article describes the 'dasheen' form of taro; another variety is called eddoe.Taro is...
in the fertile volcanic
Basalt
Basalt is a common extrusive volcanic rock. It is usually grey to black and fine-grained due to rapid cooling of lava at the surface of a planet. It may be porphyritic containing larger crystals in a fine matrix, or vesicular, or frothy scoria. Unweathered basalt is black or grey...
soil
Soil
Soil is a natural body consisting of layers of mineral constituents of variable thicknesses, which differ from the parent materials in their morphological, physical, chemical, and mineralogical characteristics...
. During most of those times, the Moi of Maui held dominion over Lānai, but generally left the people of Lānai to their own devices. Life on Lānai remained relatively calm until King Kamehameha I
Kamehameha I
Kamehameha I , also known as Kamehameha the Great, conquered the Hawaiian Islands and formally established the Kingdom of Hawaii in 1810. By developing alliances with the major Pacific colonial powers, Kamehameha preserved Hawaii's independence under his rule...
or Kalaniōpuu-a-Kaiamamao took control, slaughtering people on every part of the island. So many were killed that when Captain
Captain (Royal Navy)
Captain is a senior officer rank of the Royal Navy. It ranks above Commander and below Commodore and has a NATO ranking code of OF-5. The rank is equivalent to a Colonel in the British Army or Royal Marines and to a Group Captain in the Royal Air Force. The rank of Group Captain is based on the...
George Vancouver
George Vancouver
Captain George Vancouver RN was an English officer of the British Royal Navy, best known for his 1791-95 expedition, which explored and charted North America's northwestern Pacific Coast regions, including the coasts of contemporary Alaska, British Columbia, Washington and Oregon...
sailed past the island in 1792, he didn't bother to land because of Lānai's apparent lack of villages and population. It is mentioned that Lānai was Kamehameha's favorite fishing spot across Hawaii's main eight islands.
Lānai was first seen by Europeans on February 25, 1779, when Captain Charles Clerke
Charles Clerke
Captain Charles Clerke RN was an officer in the Royal Navy who sailed on four voyages of exploration.Clerke started studying at the Royal Naval Academy in Portsmouth when he was 13. During the Seven Years' War he served aboard HMS Dorsetshire and HMS Bellona...
sighted the island from aboard James Cook
James Cook
Captain James Cook, FRS, RN was a British explorer, navigator and cartographer who ultimately rose to the rank of captain in the Royal Navy...
's HMS Resolution
HMS Resolution (Cook)
HMS Resolution was a sloop of the Royal Navy, and the ship in which Captain James Cook made his second and third voyages of exploration in the Pacific...
. Clerke had taken command of the ship after Cook was killed at Kealakekua Bay
Kealakekua Bay
Kealakekua Bay is located on the Kona coast of the island of Hawaii about south of Kailua-Kona.Settled over a thousand years ago, the surrounding area contains many archeological and historical sites such as religious temples, and was listed in the National Register of Historic Places listings on...
on February 14 and was leaving the islands for the North Pacific
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
.
By the 1870s, Walter M. Gibson
Walter M. Gibson
Walter Murray Gibson was an American adventurer and a government minister in the Kingdom of Hawaii prior to the kingdom's 1887 constitution.-Life:...
had acquired most of the land on the island for ranching. Prior to this he had used it as a Mormon
Mormon
The term Mormon most commonly denotes an adherent, practitioner, follower, or constituent of Mormonism, which is the largest branch of the Latter Day Saint movement in restorationist Christianity...
colony. In 1899, his daughter and son-in-law formed Maunalei Sugar Company, headquartered in Keomuku on the windward coast downstream from Maunalei Valley. However the company lasted only until 1901. Nevertheless, many Native Hawaiians
Native Hawaiians
Native Hawaiians refers to the indigenous Polynesian people of the Hawaiian Islands or their descendants. Native Hawaiians trace their ancestry back to the original Polynesian settlers of Hawaii.According to the U.S...
continued to live along the less arid windward coast, supporting themselves by ranching and fishing
Fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
until pineapples displaced ranching.
In 1922, James Dole
James Dole
James Drummond Dole , also known as the "Pineapple King'", was an American industrialist who developed the pineapple industry in Hawaii and established the Hawaiian Pineapple Company. Hawaiian Pineapple Company, or HAPCO, was later reorganized to become the Dole Food Company, which now does...
, the president of Hawaiian Pineapple Company (later renamed Dole Food Company
Dole Food Company
Dole Food Company, Inc. is an American-based agricultural multinational corporation headquartered in Westlake Village, California. The company is the largest producer of fruits and vegetables in the world, operating with 74,300 full-time and seasonal employees who are responsible for over 300...
), bought the entire island of Lānai and developed a large portion of it into the world's largest pineapple
Pineapple
Pineapple is the common name for a tropical plant and its edible fruit, which is actually a multiple fruit consisting of coalesced berries. It was given the name pineapple due to its resemblance to a pine cone. The pineapple is by far the most economically important plant in the Bromeliaceae...
plantation
Plantation
A plantation is a long artificially established forest, farm or estate, where crops are grown for sale, often in distant markets rather than for local on-site consumption...
.
With statehood, Lānai became part of the County of Maui
Maui County, Hawaii
-National protected areas:* Haleakala National Park* Kakahaia National Wildlife Refuge* Kealia Pond National Wildlife Refuge- Demographics :As of the 2000 Census, there were 128,094 people, 43,507 households, and 29,889 families residing in the county. The population density was 110 people per...
.
In 1985, Lānai passed into the control of David H. Murdock
David H. Murdock
David Howard Murdock is an American businessman. Forbes ranks him as the 130th-richest person in the "Forbes 400" list and 376th in the "World's Billionaires" list, with a net worth of US$3 billion as of March 2011....
, as a result of his purchase of Castle & Cooke
Castle & Cooke
Castle & Cooke, Inc. is a Los Angeles-based company that was once part of the Big Five companies in territorial Hawaii. The company at one time did most of its business in agriculture...
.
Legends
According to the Hawaiian legendsHawaiian mythology
Hawaiian mythology refers to the legends, historical tales and sayings of the ancient Hawaiian people. It is considered a variant of a more general Polynesian mythology, developing its own unique character for several centuries before about 1800. It is associated with the Hawaiian religion...
, man-eating spirits occupied the island before that time. For generations, Maui chiefs believed in these man-eating spirits. Differing legends say that either the prophet Lanikāula drove the spirits from the island or the unruly Maui prince Kauluāau accomplished that heroic feat. The more popular myth is that the mischievous Kauluāau pulled up every ulu (Artocarpus altilis
Breadfruit
Breadfruit is a species of flowering tree in the mulberry family, Moraceae, growing throughout Southeast Asia and most Pacific Ocean islands...
) tree he could find on Maui. Finally his father, Kakaalaneo
Kakaalaneo
Kakaalaneo was the 12th Moi of Maui. He was the titular chieftain or king of the island of Maui.He was son of Kaulahea I of Maui. His brother was Kakae. Kakaalaneo appears to be the center of the legends of that reign. He and his brother, appears to have jointly ruled Maui and Lānai with his...
had to banish him to Lānai, expecting him not to survive in that hostile place. However Kauluāau outwitted the spirits and drive them from the island. The chief looked across the channel from Maui and saw that his son's fire continued to burn nightly on the shore, and he sent a canoe to Lānai to bring the prince, redeemed by his courage and his cleverness, back home to Maui. As a reward, Kakaalaneo gave Kauluāau control of the island and encouraged emigration from other islands. Kauluāau had, in the meantime, pulled up all the ulu trees on Lānai, accounting for the historic lack of ulu on that island.
Geography
Traditionally, Lānaʻi was subdivided into 13 Ahupuaʻa, grouped into two districts (mokuoloko): kona (Leeward) and koolau (Windward). The ahupuaʻa are listed below, in clockwise sequence, and with original area figures in acreAcre
The acre is a unit of area in a number of different systems, including the imperial and U.S. customary systems. The most commonly used acres today are the international acre and, in the United States, the survey acre. The most common use of the acre is to measure tracts of land.The acre is related...
s, starting in the northwest of the island.
| Nr. | Ahupuaʻa | area acre Acre The acre is a unit of area in a number of different systems, including the imperial and U.S. customary systems. The most commonly used acres today are the international acre and, in the United States, the survey acre. The most common use of the acre is to measure tracts of land.The acre is related... s |
Fläche km² |
popu- lation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kaa | 19468 | 78.78 | 207 |
| 2 | Paomai | 9078 | 36.74 | 147 |
| 3 | Mahana | 7973 | 32.27 | 1 |
| 4 | Maunalei | 3794 | 15.35 | 0 |
| 5 | Kalulu | 6078 | 24.60 | 1 |
| 6 | Kaunolu | 7860 | 31.81 | 3 |
| 7 | Palawai | 5897 | 23.86 | 1 |
| 8 | Pawili | 1930 | 7.81 | 0 |
| 9 | Kaohai | 9677 | 39.16 | 1 |
| 10 | Kamao | 2751 | 11.13 | 2 |
| 11 | Kealia Aupuni | 5897 | 23.86 | 2 |
| 12 | Kealia Kapu | 1829 | 7.40 | 1 |
| 13 | Kamoku | 8291 | 33.55 | 2804 |
| Lānaʻi | 90523 | 366.33 | 3170 |
Kamoku hosts the largest share of population, because the bigger part of Lānai City
Lana'i City, Hawai'i
Lanai City is a census-designated place on the island of Lanai, in Maui County, Hawaii, United States. The population was 3,164 at the 2000 census. Because of the island of Lanai's small population, Lanai City functions as the island's main commerce and business area...
falls into it. Parts of Lanaʻi City stretch to Kaa and Paomai. As of 2010, the remaining ahupuaʻa were virtually uninhabited. According to the census of 2000, Lanaʻi City accounts for 99 percent of the island population (3164 of 3193). As a census designated place, Lanaʻi City is defined solely for statistical purposes, and not by administrative boundaries.
Tourism
TourismTourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
on Lānai began to be prominent in more recent history as the pineapple and sugarcane
Sugarcane
Sugarcane refers to any of six to 37 species of tall perennial grasses of the genus Saccharum . Native to the warm temperate to tropical regions of South Asia, they have stout, jointed, fibrous stalks that are rich in sugar, and measure two to six metres tall...
industries were phased out in the islands.
As of 2011, the two resort
Resort
A resort is a place used for relaxation or recreation, attracting visitors for holidays or vacations. Resorts are places, towns or sometimes commercial establishment operated by a single company....
hotel
Hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. The provision of basic accommodation, in times past, consisting only of a room with a bed, a cupboard, a small table and a washstand has largely been replaced by rooms with modern facilities, including en-suite bathrooms...
s on Lānai were managed by Four Seasons Hotels
Four Seasons Hotels
Four Seasons Hotels, Inc. is a Canadian-based international ultra-luxury, five-star hotel management company. Travel + Leisure magazine and Zagat Survey rank the hotel chain's 84 properties among the top luxury hotels worldwide...
; the Four Seasons Resort Lanai
Four Seasons Resort Lanai
Four Seasons Resort Lānai at Mānele Bay is a part of the Toronto-based Four Seasons chain of luxury hotels and resorts. Four Seasons Resort Lānai, one of only four Hawaiian Four Seasons resorts, offers a premier golf course designed by Jack Nicklaus...
and the Lodge at Kōʻele. The Hotel Lānai in Lānai City was built in 1923 by James Dole
James Dole
James Drummond Dole , also known as the "Pineapple King'", was an American industrialist who developed the pineapple industry in Hawaii and established the Hawaiian Pineapple Company. Hawaiian Pineapple Company, or HAPCO, was later reorganized to become the Dole Food Company, which now does...
of the Hawaiian Pineapple Company
Dole Food Company
Dole Food Company, Inc. is an American-based agricultural multinational corporation headquartered in Westlake Village, California. The company is the largest producer of fruits and vegetables in the world, operating with 74,300 full-time and seasonal employees who are responsible for over 300...
as a lodge to house the executives overseeing the island’s pineapple production. It was the island’s only hotel until 1990.
Lānai is also home to two golf courses, one at each Four Seasons resort. "The Challenge at Manele" borders the ocean and was designed by Jack Nicklaus
Jack Nicklaus
Jack William Nicklaus , nicknamed "The Golden Bear", is an American professional golfer. He won 18 career major championships on the PGA Tour over a span of 25 years and is widely regarded as one of the greatest professional golfers of all time. In addition to his 18 Majors, he was runner-up a...
. "The Experience at Koele" is located in the mountains of Lānai and was designed by Greg Norman
Greg Norman
Gregory John Norman AO is an Australian professional golfer and entrepreneur who spent 331 weeks as the world's Number 1 ranked golfer in the 1980s and 1990s...
. Bill Gates
Bill Gates
William Henry "Bill" Gates III is an American business magnate, investor, philanthropist, and author. Gates is the former CEO and current chairman of Microsoft, the software company he founded with Paul Allen...
was married on the 12th hole tee-box at The Challenge at Manele.
In Lānai City, there are no traffic lights, no shopping malls, and public transportation is supplied by a hotel contractor. For a one-time fee, hotel guests enjoy unlimited rides on small and large buses that go between the hotels and the ferry landing on Manele Bay. Bicycles and off-road vehicles are for rent. Most attractions outside of the hotels and town can be visited only via dirt roads that require an off-road vehicle.