Keawepoepoe was the son and ''keiki aliʻi'' (prince or child of a chief) of aliʻi nui (great noble or king) Lonoikahaupu and aliʻi nui wahine (great noblewoman or queen) Kalanikauleleiaiwi who became father of the royal twins,

Kamanawa ''For other persons with this name, please see Kamanawa II.'' Kamanawa (died c. 1802?) was a Hawaiian high chief and early supporter of King Kamehameha I, known as one of the royal ''Nīʻaupiʻo'' twins with his brother Kameeiamoku. He later bec ...

and

Kameʻeiamoku Kameeiamoku (died 1802) was a Hawaiian high chief and the Counselor of State to King Kamehameha I. He was called Kamehameha's uncle, but he was really the cousin of Kamehameha's mother, Kekuiapoiwa II. Birth and ancestry Along with his twin b ...

. He was born sometime in the 1700s and was the youngest child of his mother, who was also the wife and half sister of

Keaweʻīkekahialiʻiokamoku Keaweīkekahialiiokamoku (c. 1665 – c. 1725) was the king of Hawaii Island in the late 17th century. He was the great-grandfather of Kamehameha I, the first king of the Kingdom of Hawaii. He was a progenitor of the House of Keawe. Biography He ...

. His name means; "round Keawe". Due to his high rank from both parents as well as his father's status as a Kauaian Lono priest, Keawepoepoe was given the ''kapu o pahenakalani'' (the prostrating kapu). His lineage through his mother makes him a descendant of Haloa through Keakealanikane.

Birth and early life

Lonoikahaupu, who had peacefully inherited the western side of Kauai as ruler, had embarked on a tour of the islands along with a huge entourage of double hulled canoes carrying musicians, dancers as well as the monarch's main navigator, priest, astrologer and an entire retinue of attendants. He may have visited

Oahu Oahu () ( Hawaiian: ''Oʻahu'' ()), also known as "The Gathering Place", is the third-largest of the Hawaiian Islands. It is home to roughly one million people—over two-thirds of the population of the U.S. state of Hawaii. The island of O� ...

, Molokai and Maui and then set off to visit the Island of

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...

, which was ruled by Keaweʻīkekahialiʻiokamoku and his half sister Kalanikauleleiaiwi. Lonoikahaupu was entertained with festivities and amusements for weeks by the royal couple of Hawaii Island. During this period Kalanikauleleiaiwi became captivated with the Kauaian ruler and took him as one of her recognized husbands. From this union Keawepoepoe was born. He was the youngest child and possibly his mother's favorite. As he grew he was considered a handsome young man who charmed many young women. As the son of Kalanikauleleiaiwi and Lonoikahaupu, monarch's of several kingdoms between them, Keawepoepoe was an ''aliʻi'' (noble) of Hawaii, Maui, Oahu and Kauai. As well being the an ''aliʻi nui'' (great king or supreme monarch) Lonoikahaupu was a kahuna (priest) of the order of Lono (order of Nahulu or Holoa'e), one of two priestly orders, Kū (Kuali'i or Kauali'i) being the other. Through this union Keawepoepoe received the ''kapu o pahenakalani'' (the prostrating kapu) which is how the Hawaii ''aliʻi'' received the '' kapu'' (a religious code of conduct) called the ''kapu moe''. In the Hawaiian language ''Keawepoepoe'' translates as; "round Keawe".

Lineage

Keawepoepoe, Alapainui and Kauaua a Mahi were all descendants of Luahine (k), who was the youngest of three brothers including Palena and Paia, all of whom were of the same mother and father. The three brothers had saved the life of Kuaana when Keakealaniwahine ordered his death by drowning. The brothers persuaded the monarch to set him adrift on a raft rather than having him put to death. Once the raft had drifted out of the site of land, the three brothers aided Kuaana to a safe landing on Maui. The Luahine descendants connect to the lineage of Haloa through Keakealanikane.

Wives, children and grandchildren

Keawepoepoe was the father of

Keeaumoku Pāpaiahiahi Keeaumoku Pāpaiahiahi (1736–1804) was a Hawaiian high chief and the father of Kaahumanu. He was the principal agent in elevating Kamehameha I to the throne of Hawaii and served in a capacity similar to commander in chief or Prime Minister. H ...

, the royal Twins, Kamanawa and Kameʻeiamoku as well as Alapai Maloiki and Kaulunae. The first thee three brothers, along with

Keawe-a-Heulu Keaweaheulu Kaluaʻapana (sometimes Keawe-a-Heulu, died 1804) was a Hawaiian high chief and maternal great-grandfather of King Kalākaua and Queen Liliʻuokalani. He was among Kamehameha I's council of chiefs and was one of the Five Kona chiefs. ...

were the principle warriors that assisted

Kamehameha I Kamehameha I (; Kalani Paiea Wohi o Kaleikini Kealiikui Kamehameha o Iolani i Kaiwikapu kaui Ka Liholiho Kūnuiākea; – May 8 or 14, 1819), also known as Kamehameha the Great, was the conqueror and first ruler of the Kingdom of Hawaii. Th ...

conquer all but the island of Kauai. Keeaumoku's mother was Kūmaʻaikū, who was also the mother of Alapai Maloiki and Kaulunae.

Abraham Fornander Abraham Fornander (November 4, 1812 – November 1, 1887) was a Swedish-born emigrant who became an important journalist, judge, and ethnologist in Hawaii. Early life and education Fornander was born in Öland, Sweden on November 4, 1812, to An ...

mentions Keeaumoku as the son of Keawepoepoe several times. In; "The Polynesian Race Volume II" on page 132 Fornander states all three, Keeaumoku, Kamanawa and Kameʻeiamoku are the sons of Keawepoepoe however, on page 154 he also states that Kamanawa and Kameʻeiamoku were the ''"tabbooed twin children of Kekaulike (King of Maui)"''. While there are legends that refer to Kamanawa and Kameʻeiamoku as the children of Kekaulike, Fornander stated that all the genealogies he had seen have Keawepoepoe as their father and Kanoena, daughter of Lonoanahulu (k) of the Ehu family. According to Almira Hollander Pitman in her 1931 publication; "After fifty years: an appreciation, and a record of a unique incident", Pitman states that Kanoena was Keawepoepoe's cousin. His grandchildren include Ulumāheihei

Hoapili Ulumāheihei Hoapili (c. 1775 – January 3, 1840) was a member of the nobility during the formation of the Kingdom of Hawaii. He was a trusted military and political advisor to King Kamehameha I, known as "Kamehameha the Great". Although trusted w ...

who was the father of

Kuini Liliha Kuini Liliha (–1839) was a High Chiefess (aliʻi) and noblewoman who served the Kingdom of Hawaii as royal governor of Oʻahu island. She administered the island from 1829 to 1831 following the death of her husband Boki. Early life She was ...

. Hoapili was the son of Kameʻeiamoku making him cousins to

Kaʻahumanu Kaahumanu (March 17, 1768 – June 5, 1832) (''"the feathered mantle"'') was queen consort and acted as regent of the Kingdom of Hawaii as Kuhina Nui. She was the favorite wife of King Kamehameha I and also the most politically powerfu ...

and her brothers and sisters,

Kalākua Kaheiheimālie Kalākua Kaheiheimālie, later known as Hoapili Wahine (–1842) was a member of Hawaiian royalty who was one of the Queen consorts at the founding of the Kingdom of Hawaii. She was mother of another Queen consort, and grandmother of two future k ...

, Kahekili Keʻeaumoku II,

Kuakini John Adams Kiiapalaoku Kuakini (1789–1844) was an important adviser to Kamehameha I in the early stages of the Kingdom of Hawaii. He was responsible for contributing to the infrastructure among other changes in the Kona District during this era. ...

, and

Namahana Piʻia Lydia Nāmāhāna Kekuaipiʻia (c. 1787 – 1829
) was a wife of King

Peleuli Peleuli ( fl. 19th century), formally Peleuli-i-Kekela-o-kalani, was a Queen consort of the Kingdom of Hawaii as a wife of king Kamehameha I. Biography She was a daughter of High Chief Kamanawa and High Chiefess Kekelaokalani. Her father, alo ...

. She became a wife of

shortly before the monarch took her cousin

as another wahine (wife).

Legacy

Keawepoepoe's descendants include the families of Liliha, Hoolulu, Kinimaka, Piianaia,

Keeaumoku II George Cox Kahekili Keʻeaumoku II or Keʻeaumoku ʻOpio (1784–1824) was part of an influential family at the time of the founding of the Kingdom of Hawaii. he served as a military leader, and then became a convert to Christianity and Royal Gov ...

and the

House of Kawānanakoa The House of Kawānanakoa, or the Kawānanakoa Dynasty, are descendants to the throne of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi. Origins A collateral branch of the reigning House of Kalākaua (from Kauaʻi island) and descendants of chiefs of areas such as ...

. He is a direct ancestor of King

William Charles Lunalilo Lunalilo (William Charles Lunalilo; January 31, 1835 – February 3, 1874) was the sixth monarch of the Hawaiian Kingdom, Kingdom of Hawaii from his election on January 8, 1873, until his death a year later. Born to Kekāuluohi and Charles Kana� ...

through his mother

Kekāuluohi Miriam Auhea Kalani Kui Kawakiu o Kekāuluohi Kealiʻiuhiwaihanau o Kalani Makahonua Ahilapalapa Kai Wikapu o Kaleilei a Kalakua also known as Kaahumanu III (July 27, 1794 – June 7, 1845), was Kuhina Nui of the Kingdom of Hawaii, a queen cons ...

, as well as both King David Kalākaua and Queen

Liliʻuokalani Liliʻuokalani (; Lydia Liliʻu Loloku Walania Kamakaʻeha; September 2, 1838 – November 11, 1917) was the only queen regnant and the last sovereign monarch of the Hawaiian Kingdom, ruling from January 29, 1891, until the overthrow of the Haw ...

through their father Caesar Kapaʻakea. The lands known as "Kapalilua" in Kona, Hawaii were passed from

Umi-a-Liloa ʻUmi-a-Līloa (fifteenth century) was the supreme ruler Aliʻi-ʻAimoku (High chief of Hawaiʻi Island) who inherited religious authority of Hawaiʻi from his father, High Chief Līloa, whose line is traced, unbroken to Hawaiian "creation". Aliʻ ...

to his daughter Napunanahunui in perpetuity and remained in the hands of her descendants throughout the rest of Hawaiian history until the time of Kamehameha The great when they had then passed to Keeaumoku Pāpaiahiahi from his mother Kūmaʻaikū and her family which included Iwakaualii and Iama, going back eight generations.

Ancestry

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * * Royalty of Hawaii (island) 18th-century Oceanian people