Laʻakapu was an ancient Hawaiian noble lady and a High Chiefess of the Big Island (Hawaiʻi) as a wife of

Kahoukapu Kahoukapu was an ancient Hawaiian nobleman and High Chief of the Big Island — Hawaiʻi. He was a member of the Pili line—as a descendant of Pilikaʻaiea—and an ancestor of King Kamehameha I the Great of Hawai‘i, the first ruler of the K ...

, ''Aliʻi Nui'' of

Hawaiʻi Hawaii ( ; ) is an island state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only state not on the North American mainland, th ...

. She was the mother of the High Chief Kauholanuimahu, who succeeded his father.

Biography

Lady Laʻakapu was born in ancient Hawaiʻi as a daughter of Huanuikeʻekeʻehilani and Keomahuʻilani (Ke-ō-mahuʻi-lani). Laʻakapu had two siblings. According to the famous historian

Samuel Kamakau Samuel Mānaiakalani Kamakau (October 29, 1815 – September 5, 1876) was a Hawaiian historian and scholar. His work appeared in local newspapers and was later compiled into books, becoming an invaluable resource on the Hawaiian people, Hawaiian ...

, Laʻakapu was a descendant of the nobleman Kila.

Chiefess of Hawaiʻi

Laʻakapu married High Chief

of Hawaiʻi, who was the grandson of the famous Chief Kalaunuiohua. The son of Laʻakapu and Kahoukapu was the High Chief Kauholanuimahu, who became a ruler of his island after his father's death. Through him, Laʻakapu was an ancestress of many nobles and chiefs. There is a famous legend about Laʻakapu and the birth of Kauholanuimahu. According to this old legend, she was unable to produce a child, so she asked the priest for the solution, and he told her that she need to catch a certain species of fish. Laʻakapu could not please the priest two times, and when she lost her patience, priest finally told her which kind of fish he wants. Priest performed a ritual, and he sacrificed the fish. This time, after Laʻakapu slept with Kahoukapu, she bore a son.

Other marriages

Other consorts of Laʻakapu were Kanalukapu and Lanakukahahauula. Children of Laʻakapu by Kanalukapu: *Hilo (son)

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 ...

. ''An Account of the Polynesian Race: Its Origin and Migrations (Vol II): The Ancient History of the Hawaiian People''. Trubner & Company, Ludgate Hill, London (1880) / Rutland, VT: Charles E. Tuttle Company, 1969. *Kapulaʻa (daughter) Lanakukahahauula and Laʻakapu had a daughter, Lulanalomakukahahauula, who had three children. It is not known when did Laʻakapu die.

Sources

{{Reflist House of Pili Hawaiian chiefesses