Hawaiian Legends

“Mr. Rice's theory as to the origin of these legends is based on the fact that in the old days, before the discovery of the islands by Captain Cook, there were bards and storytellers, either itinerant or attached to the courts of the chiefs…these bards or storytellers sometimes used historical incidents or natural phenomena for the foundation of their stories, which were handed down from generation to generation.”

Hawaiian Legends (1923) is a collection of Hawaiian myth and folklore complied and translated by William Hyde Rice. Having been born and spent his entire life immersed in the culture of Hawaii, Rice spent many years collecting and translating the stories he had heard in his childhood, gathered through books and sought out from elders. Determined to capture the authentic spirit of the Hawaiians, his cumulative volume is a celebration of the days of old Hawaii and the stories that have lived through the ages.

This edition of William Hyde Rice’s Hawaiian Legends is a classic of Hawaiian literature reimagined for modern readers.

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William Hyde Rice (1846 - 1924) was a businessman, politician and author. Born in Honolulu, Rice was the only son of two Protestant missionary teachers. Showing an early interest in Hawaiian culture, Rice would begin procuring knowledge of Hawaiian myth and legend, with Hawaiian being his first spoken language. By age 24, Rice had begun to serve the Hawaiian House of Representatives and just two years later would form the Kipu Plantation and Lihue Ranch, ensuring his family’s continued wealth and making them one of the top private landowners on the island. In 1887, while working as a Senator, Rice would help draw up the Constitution of the Kingdom of Hawaii and be one of the thirteen committeemen who would force King David Kalākaua to sign. Rice would continue to assist the United States in the overthrow of the Hawaiian monarchy and colonization of the islands by betraying Queen Liliʻuokalani and placing her under house arrest in 1893; later continuing his political career in the newly formed and short-lived Republic of Hawaii from 1895 to 1898. While his extensive knowledge of Hawaiian culture would lead to the publication of Hawaiian Legends (1923) Rice’s admiration for the islands would be overshadowed by his act of treachery against Hawaii and her people.