William Drake Westervelt was among the more literary of Hawaiian story interpreters. When he passed away at his Waikiki home in 1939, he was widely eulogized as Hawai'i's foremost authority on island folklore. His anthologies of Hawaiian myths, legends and folk tales represented the very best of the English versions of a Hawaiian perspective on the sacred and the profane, and served as an invaluable recording of narratives that would otherwise have been lost.
Now back in print, Legends of Old Honolulu
introduces the figures who shaped the mythical and early history of old Honolulu. We meet demigods like the water providers Ka-ne and Kanaloa, warriors, priests, the fairy people known as Menehunes, the shape-shifting dog Ku as well as other spirits and ghosts of Hawai'i. Readers familiar to Hawai'i as well as those new to the islands, or simply students of history or devotees of wonderful tales can meet the fascinating personalities that helped lay the creative foundation for the literary arts in the fiftieth state.
Folklore lovers the world over will also enjoy being able to compare these tales with those of other lands.
Overview
William Drake Westervelt was among the more literary of Hawaiian story interpreters. When he passed away at his Waikiki home in 1939, he was widely eulogized as Hawai'i's foremost authority on island folklore. His anthologies of Hawaiian myths, legends and folk tales represented the very best of the English versions of a Hawaiian perspective on the sacred and the profane, and served as an invaluable recording of narratives that would otherwise ...