Name Both
Lahaina and
Lāhainā are correct orthography in modern Hawaiian.
Modern name, etymology and pronunciations Protestant missionaries sent by the
American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM) began organizing a way to write the Hawaiian language with English letters between 1820–1826 after they reached Hawaii. According to
Thrums Hawaiian Annual of 1921 the proper pronunciation of Lahaina is La-hai-ná. Lahaina has different pronunciations depending on how
diacritical marks are applied. Lahaina is a combination of two Hawaiian words, “lā” which means sun, and “hainā” which means cruel. The varied spellings Lāhainā and Lahaina are commonly interchanged when written in modern English, although the traditional spelling “Lāhainā” is still considered proper.
Ancient names Lahaina was originally called
Lele in
Hawaiian and was known for its
breadfruit trees.
Lele means jump or fly.
Albert Pierce Taylor explains its relationship to the area as the "flying piece of
kuleana, that which sticks out from the sea". In 1915, James N.K. Keola, in an article in
Mid-Pacific Magazine entitled "Old Lahaina", wrote: "Lahaina is said to have received its name from
Lā, the sun, and
hainā, merciless. A bald-headed chief who lived at Kauaula Valley, while going to and fro without a hat, felt annoyed at the effects of the scorching rays of the burning sun. He looked up and gazed into the heavens and cursed at the sun thus:
He keu hoi keia o ka la haina!" ("What a merciless sun!"). On July 13, 1920, the
Star Bulletin published several theories on the name's origins that included the bald-headed chief legend, as well as theories that included the belief that the name goes back to 11th century as
Laha aina (Proclaiming land). Other interpretations of the name include "day (of) sacrifice" and "day (of) explanation". Inez MacPhee Ashdown (1899–1992), historian and founder of Maui Historical Society, believed the name was
Lahaʻaina, meaning "land (of) prophecy", because of the number of
kahuna nui (high priest) prophecies made there.
Early rulers The first
mōʻī or
aliʻi nui (supreme ruler) of western Maui was
Haho, the son of
Paumakua a huanuikalalailai. This line produced the subsequent rulers. The name
Lele was adopted during the reign of
Kakaʻalaneo. He held court there during joint rule with his brother
Kakae, while living on a hill called
Kekaʻa. They were the sons and heirs of
Kaulahea I. Kakaʻalaneo first planted breadfruit trees while his son Kaululaʻau is credited with expelling ghosts from
Lānaʻi and putting the island under the rule of his father and uncle. Kakae's son
Kahekili I succeeded his father and uncle as ruler. Kahekili I's successor was his son
Kawaokaohele, who was succeeded by his own son
Piʻilani Piʻilani was the first ruler of the entire island of Maui when he extended his sovereignty over East Maui. The aliʻi of Hāna district accepted him as supreme ruler. Piʻilani also controlled the neighboring islands of Lānaʻi,
Kahoʻolawe, and parts of
Molokaʻi. In 1738, Lahaina and most of West Maui were the sites of a series of battles between the forces of Kamehamehanui Aiʻluau with his uncle and ally
Alapaʻi, the
ali‘i nui of Hawaii Island, against his half-brother Kauhiʻaimokuakama with his ally
Peleʻioholani, the
ali‘i nui of Oʻahu. The war ended in a truce between Alapaʻi and Peleʻioholani and the capture and execution of Kauhiʻaimokuakama by drowning. The remains of the fallen soldiers from both sides are said to be buried in the sands of
Kāʻanapali district.
Western contact On November 26, 1778
Captain James Cook's ships appeared near Maui while the island's monarch
Kahekili II battled the forces of
Kalaniʻōpuʻu, the
ali‘i nui of Hawaii Island. He did not land on the island but was greeted by the warriors of Kalaniʻōpuʻu including a young
Kamehameha I in their war canoes. The base of the
Kamehameha statue in Honolulu depicts the warrior meeting Cook off the coast of Lahaina.
Kahekili II British explorer
George Vancouver visited in 1793 and unsuccessfully attempted to mediate a peace between Kahekili and Kalaniʻōpuʻu's successor Kamehameha I. During his visit, he gave a description of the constant warfare on Lahaina: The village of Raheina ... seemed to be pleasantly situated on a space of low or rather gently elevated land, in the midst of a grove of bread-fruit, cocoa-nut, and other trees...In the village the houses seemed to be numerous and to be well inhabited. A few of the natives visited the ships; these brought but little with them, and most of them were in very small miserable canoes. These circumstances strongly indicated their poverty, and proved what had been frequently asserted at Owhyhee, that Mowee and its neighbouring islands were reduced to great indigence by the wars in which for many years they had been engaged.
Kamehameha I and Kamehameha II From 1802 to 1803, Kamehameha I stationed his large fleet of
peleleu war-canoes in Lahaina. While there, he wrote to the last independent ruler of Kauaʻi,
Kaumualiʻi, asking him to acknowledge his overlordship. Although an invasion failed in 1804, Kaumualiʻi surrendered in 1810, uniting the Hawaiian Islands for the first time.
Kamehameha II resided in Lahaina from December 1819 until February 1820, when he returned to Honolulu.
Christian missionaries and the island of
Mokuʻula and Mokuhinia, . National Gallery of Art Library. American Protestant missionaries from the ABCFM arrived in the Hawaiian Islands in 1820, setting up stations on Hawaiʻi, Oʻahu and Kauaʻi. However, the first mission station on
Maui was not established until 1823 by Reverend Charles Stewart and
William Richards. The two men and their family accompanied Queen
Keōpūolani, the wife of Kamehameha I, and her daughter Princess
Nāhiʻenaʻena from Oʻahu to Lahaina. They were tasked with instructing the queen about
Christianity, to which Keōpūolani converted on her deathbed. The missionaries erected a temporary church made of wooden poles and a thatched roof. In 1824, at the chiefs' request,
Betsey Stockton started the first mission school open to common people. Maui Governor
Hoapili ordered the construction of a stone church. The cornerstone of the
Waiola Church (originally named Ebenezera or Waineʻe Church) was laid on September 14, 1828. On more than one occasion the conflict became so severe that sailors rioted. The British whaling ship in 1827 shelled Lahaina. In response, Governor Hoapili built the
Old Lahaina Fort in 1831 to protect the town from disorderly conduct of sailors.
Kamehameha III Kamehameha III resided in a traditional royal compound on the sacred island of
Mokuʻula located on Mokuhinia lake in the middle of Lahaina from 1837 to 1845. He built a two-story, Western-style palace in 1838 named Hale Piula, although it was not completed before the court moved. During his residence, Kamehameha III signed and proclaimed the first
Hawaiian constitution on October 8, 1840, at Luaʻehu, in Lahaina. The
legislature's first meeting was held on April 1, 1841, also at Luaʻehu. With the growing commercial importance of Oʻahu, Kamehameha III moved the capital to
Honolulu in 1845. Hale Piula was then transformed into a courthouse until it was heavily damaged in an 1858 storm. The following year, the
Old Lahaina Courthouse was built as a replacement courthouse and customhouse at a site near the old fort. The 1919 fire led to the creation of the island-wide Maui Fire Department and adoption of fire safety standards. In 2024,
Maui County released plans for rebuilding the commercial district, infrastructure and affordable housing with a completion estimate of six years. ==Geography==