Land and genealogy of `Ioleka`a: mapping an indigenous identity

Abstract

This thesis examines the implications of genealogical connections to blood and place (genealogy and land), as a prerequisite to self-determination and nation building. The identity of self becomes an undertaking grounded by ancestral land tenure and established genealogical connections to the `ili of `Ioleka`a, a kuleana land parcel located in He`e`ia on the island of O`ahu. The kanaka `ōiwi voice is the signifier in this narrative and the discovery of self becomes a mapping project that locates not only a physical place, but the locus of the ancestors who have lived and still reside now on the land. The identity of self is fueled by both tangible and spiritual tenets which provide ancestral wisdom, blood connections, and relation to land as mortar for the kānaka `ōiwi foundation. These are necessary for kānaka `ōiwi well-being, self-determination and by extension, the building of an `Ōiwi Nation.