From Oral Tradition to Written Word: The Birth of Hawaiian Literacy

By Amy Schwab

For centuries, the Hawaiian language flourished through a rich oral tradition. Through chant and song, Hawaiians recorded their history, preserved genealogies, and passed stories from one generation to the next. The transformation from this purely oral tradition to one of the highest literacy rates in the world represents one of the most remarkable chapters in Hawaiian history.

Henry ʻŌpūkahaʻia

Henry ʻŌpūkahaʻia (c. 1792 – 1818) was one of the first Native Hawaiians to become a Christian, inspiring American Protestant missionaries to come to the islands during the 19th century.

Thaddeus

The original brig Thaddeus set sail from Boston Harbor on October 23, 1819, carrying the first company of Protestant missionaries to the Hawaiian Islands.

Printing Press

The first printing press in Hawaii, a Ramage press, arrived in 1820 with missionaries and produced its first printed material on January 7, 1822, in Honolulu, printing a Hawaiian spelling book (primer).

The first Hawaiian primer, a spelling book

The first orthography for ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi was developed by American Protestant missionaries in the 1820s, first printed on January 7, 1822, featuring five vowels and thirteen consonants.

January 7, 1822

The first prints of a primer for ‘ōlelo Hawai’i were pulled on the press. Ke’eaumoku, governor of Maui, pulled the first sheet. Elisha Loomis, the missionary that brought the printing press struck the second, and James Hunnewell, first officer of the Thaddeus pulled the third.

A replica of the press is located at the Hawaiian Mission Houses Historic Site and Archives in Honolulu.