Nalani Kanakaʻole (born March 19, 1946) is an American Hawaiian

kumu hula Hula () is a Hawaiian dance form expressing chant (''oli'') or song ( ''mele''). It was developed in the Hawaiian Islands by the Native Hawaiians who settled there. The hula dramatizes or portrays the words of the oli or mele in a visual dance ...

(hula teacher) at Hālau o Kekuhi, the dance company. The daughter of Edith Kanakaʻole, she leads Hālau o Kekuhi along with her niece Huihui Kanahele-Mossman. In 1993, she and her sister, Pualani Kanakaʻole Kanahele, were jointly named National Heritage Fellows by the

National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the feder ...

, which recognized them as "Hula Masters".

Early life and education

Kanakaʻole was raised on homestead lands in Keaukaha,

Hilo, Hawaii Hilo () is the largest settlement in and the county seat of Hawaii County, Hawaiʻi, United States, which encompasses the Island of Hawaiʻi, and is a census-designated place (CDP). The population was 44,186 according to the 2020 census. I ...

, in a traditional Hawaiian fashion. She first learned hula from her grandmother, Mary Kekuewa Kanaele Fujii. She was 13 years old when her mother Edith Kanakaʻole started work as a hula teacher, and began teaching hula herself at the age of 14 in 1960. Her family spoke the

Hawaiian language Hawaiian (', ) is a critically endangered Polynesian language of the Austronesian language family, originating in and native to the Hawaiian Islands. It is the native language of the Hawaiian people. Hawaiian, along with English, is an offi ...

at home.

Career

In 1985, Kanakaʻole opened Sig Zane Designs alongside her husband, Sig Zane.

Personal life

In 1982, Kanakaʻole and Sig Zane had a son, Kūhaʻo Zane.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kanaka'ole, Nalani 1946 births Hula dancers Dance teachers National Heritage Fellowship winners Living people Native Hawaiian women