The Hawaiian Romance of Laieikawai

About S. N. Hale'ole

S.N. Haleole (1819-1866) was a Native Hawaiian writer and historian. Born at a time of monumental change in the Kingdom of Hawaii Haleole 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 Haleole worked as a teacher in Haiku Maui before embarking on a career as a writer and editor. In the last decade of his life Haleole 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 Haleoles status as a leading intellectual among his people and bringing the story of Hawaii to the world stage.