''Alyxia stellata'', known as ''maile'' in Hawaiian, is a species of
flowering plant
Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...
in the
dogbane
Dogbane, dog-bane, dog's bane, and other variations, some of them regional and some transient, are names for certain plants that are reputed to kill or repel dogs; "bane" originally meant "slayer", and was later applied to plants to indicate tha ...
family, ''
Apocynaceae
Apocynaceae (from ''Apocynum'', Greek for "dog-away") is a family of flowering plants that includes trees, shrubs, herbs, stem succulents, and vines, commonly known as the dogbane family, because some taxa were used as dog poison Members of the ...
'', that is native to
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 stat ...
. It grows as either a twining
liana
A liana is a long- stemmed, woody vine that is rooted in the soil at ground level and uses trees, as well as other means of vertical support, to climb up to the canopy in search of direct sunlight. The word ''liana'' does not refer to a ta ...
, scandent shrub, or small erect
shrub
A shrub (often also called a bush) is a small-to-medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees ...
, and is one of the few
vine
A vine (Latin ''vīnea'' "grapevine", "vineyard", from ''vīnum'' "wine") is any plant with a growth habit of trailing or scandent (that is, climbing) stems, lianas or runners. The word ''vine'' can also refer to such stems or runners themselv ...
s that are
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...
to the islands. The
binomial nomenclature
In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...
means "chain resembling olive" in
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
. The leaves are usually
ternate
Ternate is a city in the Indonesian province of North Maluku and an island in the Maluku Islands. It was the ''de facto'' provincial capital of North Maluku before Sofifi on the nearby coast of Halmahera became the capital in 2010. It is off the we ...
, sometimes opposite, and can show both types on the same stem.Wagner et al. 1990 Manual of the Flowering Plants of Hawaii 1, University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu, p. 214 Flowers are quite inconspicuous and have a sweet and light fragrance of honey. The bark is most fragrant and exudes a slightly sticky, milky sap when punctured, characteristic of the family Apocynaceae. The entire plant contains
coumarin
Coumarin () or 2''H''-chromen-2-one is an aromatic organic chemical compound with formula . Its molecule can be described as a benzene molecule with two adjacent hydrogen atoms replaced by a lactone-like chain , forming a second six-membered h ...
, a sweet-smelling compound that is also present in vanilla grass (''
Anthoxanthum odoratum
''Anthoxanthum odoratum'', known as sweet vernal grass, is a short-lived perennial grass that is native to acidic grassland in Eurasia and northern Africa. It is grown as a lawn grass and a house plant, due to its sweet scent, and can also be ...
Galium odoratum
''Galium odoratum'', the sweet woodruff or sweetscented bedstraw, is a flowering perennial plant in the family Rubiaceae, native to much of Europe from Spain and Ireland to Russia, as well as Western Siberia, Turkey, Iran, the Caucasus, China ...
'') and
mullein
''Verbascum'' is a genus of over 450 species of flowering plants, common name mullein (), in the figwort family Scrophulariaceae. They are native to Europe and Asia, with the highest species diversity in the Mediterranean.
Mullein or "mullein le ...
(''Verbascum'' spp.). Fruit are oval and dark purple when ripe. ''Maile'' is a morphologically variable plant and the Hawaiian names reflect this (see Ethnobotany section).
Distribution and habitat
''Maile'' can occur in most types of vegetation at elevations from on all of the main Hawaiian Islands, however it is believed that both
Kahoolawe
Kahoolawe (Hawaiian: ), anglicized as Kahoolawe (), is the smallest of the eight main volcanic islands in the Hawaiian Islands. Kahoolawe is located about southwest of Maui and also southeast of Lānaʻi, and it is long by wide, with a total ...
and
Niihau
Niihau ( Hawaiian: ), anglicized as Niihau ( ), is the westernmost main and seventh largest inhabited island in Hawaii. It is southwest of Kauaʻi across the Kaulakahi Channel. Its area is . Several intermittent playa lakes provide wetland hab ...
likely had populations of the species before large-scale disturbances occurred. Lowland wet forests occur from elevation in the Hawaiian Islands and are prime habitat for ''maile'', receiving of rainfall annually. ''Maile'' is also found in montane mesic and wet communities.
Ethnobotanical uses
Lei
''Maile'' is traditionally and still most popularly used in '' lei''. The vines are prepared and twined together to make an open ''lei'' or if people prefer they can close it. In more rural areas it is typical for someone to pick their own ''maile'' if accessible, however because ''lei maile'' is so desirable, many floral shops carry these kinds of lei. It is one of the only endemic Hawaiian plants grown commercially for lei. Commercial ''maile'' plantationsKa Wai Ola. Office of Hawaiian Affairs. . have become more common as some people feel that imported (non-Hawaiian) ''maile'' is not as fragrant as Hawaiian ''maile''.
Lāau Lapaau
This plant was used medicinally to treat ''puho'', ''puka puhi'', ''kaupo'', and '' na eha moku kukonukonu e ae'' (other cuts). ''Maile kaluhea'' was mashed with ''aukoi'' (''
Senna occidentalis
''Senna occidentalis'' ndian vernacular name ''Usaya ki Fali''is a pantropical plant species, native to the Americas. The species was formerly placed in the genus '' Cassia''.
Vernacular names in English include septicweed, coffee senna, coffee ...
'') stalks, ''ahakea'' (''
Bobea
''Bobea'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. All species in this genus are endemic to Hawaii. ''Bobea'' was named for Jean-Baptiste Bobe-Moreau by Charles Gaudichaud-Beaupré in 1830 in his book ''Voyage de l'Uranie''.
The ...
'' spp.) and ''koa'' (''
Acacia koa
''Acacia koa'' or commonly known as koa is a species of flowering tree in the family Fabaceae. It is endemic to the Hawaiian Islands, where it is the second most common tree. The highest populations are on Hawaii, Maui and Oahu.
Name
The name ...
'') bark. After water is added to this mixture and heated, it is put on infected areas to clean.
Local tradition
''Lei maile'' are often worn by the groom, and also by the groom's men in weddings which is a lovely sight. For high school proms in Hawaii, the boy is often given a ''lei maile''. Birthdays, graduations, anniversaries and any celebration for that matter are all an occasion for ''lei maile'', however many responsible stewards to the land understand there is not enough ''maile'' to go around for everyone. This ties back in to local ''maile'' plantations that have started up.
Kapa
Kapa
Kapa is a fabric made by native Hawaiians from the bast fibres of certain species of trees and shrubs in the orders Rosales and Malvales.
Description and uses
It is similar to ''tapa'' found elsewhere in Polynesia (the Hawaiian phoneme corre ...
, pounded wauke (''
Broussonetia papyrifera
The paper mulberry (''Broussonetia papyrifera'', syn. ''Morus papyrifera'' L.) is a species of flowering plant in the family Moraceae. It is native to Asia,Melicope anisata''), ''lauae'' ('' Phymatosorus scolopendria''), ''iliahi'' (''
Santalum
''Santalum'' is a genus of woody flowering plants in the Santalaceae family, the best known and commercially valuable of which is the Indian sandalwood tree, '' S. album''. Members of the genus are trees or shrubs. Most are root parasites w ...
'' spp.) and ''kamani'' (''
Calophyllum inophyllum
''Calophyllum inophyllum'' is a large evergreen plant, commonly called tamanu, oil-nut, mastwood, beach calophyllum or beautyleaf. It is native to tropical Asia and Wallacea. Due to its importance as a source of timber for the traditional shipbu ...
'').
Conservation
Because ''maile'' is desirable for harvesting it is often incorporated into restoration plantings which can help bring the community into the conservation process.The Garden Island . One study looked at the potential of planting native Hawaiian plants as an
understory
In forestry and ecology, understory (American English), or understorey (Commonwealth English), also known as underbrush or undergrowth, includes plant life growing beneath the forest canopy without penetrating it to any great extent, but abov ...
layer to reduce weedy seedlings from sprouting up and gaining hold again in a restored area. ''Maile'', ''māmaki'' (''
Pipturus albidus
''Pipturus albidus'', known as ''māmaki'' (sometimes ''waimea'', for its resemblance to olomea) in Hawaiian and known as Waimea pipturus in English, is a species of flowering plant in the nettle family, Urticaceae, that is endemic to Hawaii. ...
Mention of the maile plant occurs in various stories ('' moolelo''), proverbs (''ōlelo noeau''), and in the song (''mele'') "Lei Awapuhi".
Lāieikawai
The maile sisters are a favorite stock characters in Hawaiian romance tales. The story of Lāieikawai tells of five ''Maile'' sisters. ''Maile hai wale'' (brittle ''maile''), ''Maile lau lii'' (small-leaved ''maile''), ''Maile lau nui'' (large-leaved ''maile''), ''Maile kaluhea'' (sweet-scented ''maile''), and ''Maile pakaha'' (blunt-leaved ''maile'').
Kauai's ''maile lau lii'' is often celebrated in song and chant. The ōlelo noeau, ''Ka maile lau lii o Koiahi'' speaks of the "fine-leaved" ''maile'' of Kokee, Kauai which had one of the best and most fragrant ''maile lau lii'' in Hawaii and was praised in old chants. Because ''maile'' was often placed on ''
heiau
A ''heiau'' () is a Hawaiian temple. Made in different architectural styles depending upon their purpose and location, they range from simple earth terraces, to elaborately constructed stone platforms. There are heiau to treat the sick (''heia ...
'' in traditional times, the older generations of Hawaiians say that the fragrance of maile still lingers in those areas where ''heiau'' once stood or are still standing.
Puna and Panaewa
Several ōlelo noeau from the
Hilo
Hilo () is a census-designated place (CDP) and the largest settlement in Hawaii County, Hawaii, Hawaii County, Hawaii, United States, which encompasses the Hawaii (island), Island of Hawaii. The population was 44,186 according to the 2020 United ...
Hawaii Island
Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii ) is the largest island in the United States, located in the state of Hawaii. It is the southeasternmost of the Hawaiian Islands, a chain of volcanic islands in the North Pacific Ocean. With an area of , it has 63% of t ...
paint a wonderfully fragrant picture of Puna and Panaewa. ''Ka makani hali ala o Puna'', the fragrance-bearing wind of Puna; , Hanakahi is adorned with the fragrance and perfume of Panaewa. These were both places that had a moist climate suitable for maile and other fragrant ferns, as well as the famous hala (''
Pandanus tectorius
''Pandanus tectorius'' is a species of ''Pandanus'' (screwpine) that is native to Malesia, Papuasia, eastern Australia, and the Pacific Islands. It grows in the coastal lowlands typically near the edge of the ocean. Common names in English inclu ...
'') from Puna. The phrase ''Puna paia ala'', fragrant walls of Puna, gives reference to the ''hīnano'' blossom which was famously hung inside ''hale'' of that district to scent the house. People traveled to both Puna and Panaewa in order to pick maile, hence those areas being remembered as fragrant.
Mōlī
Mary Kawena Pukui
Mary Abigail Kawenaulaokalaniahiiakaikapoliopele Naleilehuaapele Wiggin Pukui (20 April 1895 – 21 May 1986), known as Kawena, was a Hawaiian scholar, author, composer, hula expert, and educator.
Life
Pukui was born on April 20, 1895, in her ...
tells a story from Kaū on Hawaii Island of a beautiful young woman, Mōlī, whose father will let none other than a fisherman marry her (a good fisherman is well liked and prosperous because of the food he catches; it is also a sign of a much desired hard-working man). A certain worthless fisherman who tricked Mōlī's father by rubbing fish guts (which were thrown out by others) on himself took her hand in marriage and did no work afterwards. Driven to desperation, Mōlī decorated herself with a beautiful lei of ginger (''
Zingiber zerumbet
The genus ''Zingiber'' is native to Southeast Asia especially in Thailand, China, the Indian Subcontinent, and New Guinea. It contains the true gingers, plants grown the world over for their culinary value. The most well known are '' Z. officina ...
''), fern and ''maile'' and threw herself over the cliffs at Waiahukini. It is said each year around the time of her death, Mōlī returns and when the wind blows, moaning and wailing can be heard. The ''maile'' fragrance of her lei can also be smelled and if anyone goes there wearing a ''maile'' lei, they will be knocked to the ground., "The eerie man-calling cliff of Mōlīlele".
Keaoua Kekuaokalani
Keaoua Kekuaokalani
Keaoua Kekua-o-kalani (sometimes known as Kaiwi-kuamoo Kekua-o-kalani) was a nephew of the king Kamehameha I, the chief from Hawaii Island who unified the Hawaiian islands.
Family
He was the son of Kamehameha's younger brother Keliimaikai and ...
, a cousin to Liholiho (
Kamehameha II
Kamehameha II (November 1797 – July 14, 1824) was the second king of the Kingdom of Hawaii. His birth name was Liholiho and full name was Kalaninui kua Liholiho i ke kapu ʻIolani. It was lengthened to Kalani Kaleiʻaimoku o Kaiwikapu o Laʻ ...
), objected to the overturn of the ''
kapu Kapu may refer to:
* Kapu (Hawaiian culture), a Hawaiian code of conduct
* Kapu (caste), a social group of India
* Kapu, Karnataka, a town in Karnataka, India
** Kapu Assembly constituency
* Kapu, Arunachal Pradesh, a settlement in Tirap district, A ...
'' system and with supporters, they gathered together with weapons at the battle of Kuamoo in attempt to restore the ''kapu'' taken away. Hawaiians from the area where the battle took place hold that the fragrance of ''maile'' worn by the Kekuaokalani's warriors into battle can still be smelled.