Hawaiian People: James Cook was the first Westerner to arrive in Hawaii in 1778 where he was met with rich Hawaiian culture.
But long before Cook “found” the Islands, the Polynesians arrived possibly between AD 1190 and 1290.
In the 19th century, Hawaiian scholars Kamakau and Kepelino attributed the discovery of Hawai‘i to a fisherman named Hawai‘iloa. He is said to have discovered the islands during a long fishing trip from a homeland in the west called Ka ‘Aina kai melemelea Kane (“Land of the yellow sea of Kane”); the Big Island was named after him while Kaua‘i, O‘ahu, and Maui were named after his children.
Read more about the Polynesian discovery of Hawaii here Hawaii.edu. Enjoy the live cams of Hawaiian sunsets and surf, and explore the rich history of the Hawaiian people here!
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