Aloha ‘oe… farewell to thee. Today is my final day on the islands of Paradise and I thought I would leave you with the translated lyrics to a song, written by Queen Lili’uokalani, the last queen of the Hawaiian Islands. She dedicated this song as her farewell to her beloved country upon her removal from the throne.
Today, as I bid farewell to my beloved Hawai’i, I too must say “Aloha ‘oe”….
Original Lyrics (Hawaiian):
Ha`aheo ka ua i na pali,
Ke nihi a`e la i ka nahele,
E uhai ana paha i ka liko,
Pua ahihi lehua a o uka.
(Chorus)
Aloha `oe, aloha `oe,
E ke onaona noho i ka lipo,
One fond embrace a ho`i a`e au,
Until we meet again.
English
Proudly sweeps the rain clouded by the cliffs,
As onward it glides through the trees,
It seems to be following the liko,
The ahihi lehua of the vale.
(Chorus)
Farewell to thee, farewell to thee,
Thou charming one who dwells among the bowers.
One fond embrace before I now depart
Until we meet again.
Lili`uokalani was the last queen of the Hawaiian Islands. Her rule lasted from 1891 to 1895. She was born Lydia Paki Kamakaeha Lili`uokalani in 1838. Her parents were councilors to King Kamehameha III. Young Lydia attended the Royal School which was run by American missionaries. In 1862 she married John Owen Dominis but he died shortly after she ascended the throne.Lili`uokalani’s brother, King David Kalakaua, ascended the throne in 1874. He gave much governing power to a cabinet composed of Americans. As a result, a new constitution was passed which gave voting rights to foreign residents but denied these rights to most Hawaiian natives. Lili`uokalani succeeded to the throne upon the death of her brother in 1891. When she attempted to restore some of the power of the monarchy that had been lost during the reign of her brother, she encountered the revolt by the American colonists who controlled most of Hawaii’s economy. In 1893, U.S. marines called in by a U.S. minister occupied the government buildings in Honolulu and deposed the queen. The colonists, led by Sanford Dole, applied for annexation of the islands to the United States. Queen Lili`uokalani appealed to the U.S. President Grover Cleveland for reinstatement.
Despite President Cleveland’s orders, Dole established a provisional government in Hawaii. His forces put down the revolt by the royalists and jailed many of the queen’s supporters. In 1895 Queen Lili`uokalani was put under the house arrest in the ‘Iolani Palace for eight months after which she abdicated in return for the release of her jailed supporters. In 1898 the Hawaiian Islands were formally annexed to the United States. In the same year Queen Lili`uokalani composed a song “Aloha `Oe” (a tale of two lovers as they reluctantly depart) as a farewell to her country. She was released as a private citizen and lived at Washington Place (320 South Beretania Street) in Honolulu until her death in 1917 following a stroke.
Comments are closed.