Kauai

 

(kou'wī') , circular island (1990 pop. 51,177), 549 sq mi (1,422 sq km), 32 mi (52 km) in diameter, N Hawaii, separated from Oahu island to the southeast by Kauai Channel. Lihue (1990 pop. 5,536) is the largest town and Nawiliwili Harbor the chief port. Geologically, Kauai is the oldest of the Hawaiian Islands. It was formed by now extinct volcanoes; Kawaikini (5,170 ft/1,576 m high) and Waialeale (5,080 ft/1,548 m high) are the tallest peaks. High annual rainfall has eroded deep valleys in Kauai's central mountain mass. Waimea Canyon (2,000–3,000 ft/610–915 m deep; c.10 mi/16 km long) resembles a miniature Grand Canyon. The northeastern slopes of Waialeale, one of the wettest spots on earth, receive an annual average rainfall of 450 in. (1,143 cm).

An independent Polynesian kingdom when visited by English Capt. James Cook in 1778, Kauai became part of the Kingdom of Hawaii in 1810. The first major attempt at agricultural development in Hawaii occurred there with the establishment of a sugar plantation in 1835. Most of the island's people live along the coast. Agriculture is the main industry, but tourism also is central to the economy. In Sept., 1992, Hurricane Iniki, the strongest hurricane to hit the Hawaiian islands in the century, devastated the island.

Kauaʻi The Garden Isle
August 1995 satellite photo
Geography
Location in the state of Hawaii
Location	22°05′N, 159°30′W
Area	552.3 sq mi (1430.4 km²)
Rank	4th largest Hawaiian Island
Highest point	Kawaikini   5,243 ft (1,598 m)
Demographics
Population	58,303 (as of 2000)
Density	106/sq mi (41/km²)
Official Insignia[4]
Flower	Mokihana
Color	Poni (Purple)

Kauaʻi (Hawaiian IPA pron.: [kauˈa.ʔi]; Kauaʻi-Niʻihau dialect: [tauˈa.ʔi]; usually spelled Kauai outside the Hawaiian Islands and pronounced [kəˈwɑ.i]) is the oldest and fourth largest of the main Hawaiian Islands, having an area of 1,430.4 km² (552.3 sq mi).^[1] Known also as the "Garden Isle", Kauaʻi lies 105 miles (170 kilometers) across the Kauaʻi Channel, northwest of Oʻahu. Of volcanic origin, the highest peak on this mountainous island is Kawaikini at 1,598 m (5,243 ft).^[2] The second highest peak is Mount Waiʻaleʻale near the center of the island, 1,570 m (5,148 ft) above sea level. One of the wettest spots on Earth, with an annual average rainfall of 460 inches (11,700 millimeters), is located on the east side of Mount Waiʻaleʻale. The high annual rainfall has eroded deep valleys in the central mountains, carving out canyons with many scenic waterfalls.

There is no known meaning behind the name of Kauaʻi. Native Hawaiian tradition indicates the name's origin in the legend of Hawaiʻiloa — the Polynesian navigator attributed with discovery of the Hawaiian Islands. The story relates how he named the island of Kauaʻi after a favorite son; therefore a possible translation of Kauaʻi is "place around the neck", meaning how a father would carry a favorite child. In South Africa, a health food and drink franchise is named after the island [1].

The United States Census Bureau defines Kauaʻi as Census Tracts 401 through 409 of Kauaʻi County, Hawaiʻi, which is all of the county except for the islands of Kaʻula, Lehua, and Niʻihau. The 2000 census population of Kauaʻi (the island) was 58,303. ^[3]

History

During the reign of King Kamehameha, the islands of Kauaʻi and Niʻihau were the last Hawaiian Islands to join his Kingdom of Hawaiʻi. Their ruler, Kaumualiʻi, resisted Kamehameha for years. King Kamehameha twice prepared a huge armada of ships and canoes to take the islands by force and twice failed; once due to a storm, and once due to an epidemic. In the face of the threat of a further invasion, however, Kaumualiʻi decided to join the kingdom without bloodshed, and became Kamehameha's vassal in 1810, ceding the island to the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi upon his death.

The city of Līhuʻe, on the island's southeast coast, is the seat of Kauaʻi County and the second largest city on the island. Kapaʻa, on the "Coconut Coast" (site of an old coconut plantation) about 6 miles north of Līhuʻe, has a population of nearly 10,000, or about 50% greater than Līhuʻe. Waimea, once the capital of Kauaʻi on the island's southwest side, was the first place in Hawaiʻi visited by British explorer Captain James Cook in 1778. Waimea town is located at the mouth of the Waimea River, whose flow formed one of the most scenic canyons in the world. At 3000 ft (900 m) deep, Waimea Canyon has been called "The Grand Canyon of the Pacific".

1992's Hurricane Iniki may have caused an indirect change in Kauaʻi's ecosystem. Some say a chicken farm was destroyed, causing all of the chickens to roam free that one may see today. Others say that sugarcane plantation laborers in the late 1800s and early 1900s brought and raised chickens (for eating and cockfighting) and many got loose over the years and multiplied. Whatever their original source, Kauai is now home to thousands of wild roosters and hens, roaming the island with few natural predators. Wild roosters have been known to disturb evening quiet time at odd hours with their crowing. Currently, the Humane Society is investigating the death of large numbers of Kauai chickens. The deaths are most likely due to bacterial infections caused by over-population [2].

The island of Kauaʻi has been featured in more than 70 Hollywood movies and television shows, including the musical "South Pacific" and Disney's 2002 animated feature film and television series Lilo & Stitch. Waimea Canyon was used in the filming of the 1993 film Jurassic Park. Parts of the island were also used for the opening scenes of Raiders of the Lost Ark. Other movies filmed here include Six Days Seven Nights and the remake of King Kong. Coco Palms Resort is a famous resort located on this island and many of Elvis' films including Blue Hawaii were filmed here. The resort was damaged in the Hurricane in 1992, but is set to reopen by 2010.

Kauaʻi is home to the U.S. Navy's "Barking Sands" Pacific Missile Range Facility, on the sunny and dry western shore.

Kauaʻi was known for its distinct dialect of the Hawaiian language before it went extinct there. Whereas the standard language today is based on the dialect of Hawaiʻi island, the Kauaʻi dialect was known for pronouncing /k/ as /t/. (In fact, Kauaʻi retained the old pan-Polynesian /t/, while Hawaiʻi has innovated and changed it.) Therefore, the native name for Kauaʻi was Tauaʻi, and the major settlement of Kapaʻa would have been called Tapaʻa.

Important towns and cities

• Līhuʻe
• Hanalei
• Poʻipū
• Koloa
• Princeville
• Waimea
• Hanapepe
• Wailua
• Kapaʻa
• Haena
• Kalaheo
• Eleele

Places of interest

• Alakai Wilderness Area
• Allerton Garden
• Fern Grotto
• Hanalei Bay
• Iraivan temple
• Keʻe Beach
• Kokeʻe State Park
• Limahuli Garden and Preserve
• McBryde Garden
• Moir Gardens
• Na 'Aina Kai Botanical Gardens
• Nā Pali Coast State Park
• Spouting Horn
• Wailua River
• Waimea Canyon

See also

• Tourism on Kauaʻi
• Hurricane Iniki (1992)
• Lilo and Stitch, in which the isle is rained down by Experiment Pods. It's also the place which Lilo finds them, their "One True Place".

Notes

1. ^ Table 5.08 - Land Area of Islands: 2000. 2004 State of Hawaii Data Book. State of Hawaii (2004). Retrieved on 2007-07-23.
2. ^ Table 5.11 - Elevations of Major Summits. 2004 State of Hawaii Data Book. State of Hawaii (2004). Retrieved on 2007-07-23.
3. ^ Census Tracts 401 through 409, Kauaʻi County United States Census Bureau

References

• Edward Joesting. Kauaʻi, the Separate Kingdom. University of Hawaiʻi Press and Kauaʻi Museum Association. Honolulu. 1984. ISBN 0-8248-1162-3
• Cook, Chris (October 1996). The Kaua’i Movie Book, Landscape photography by David Boynton, Honolulu: Mutual Publishing. ISBN 1-56647-141-9. 

External links

• Kauaʻi Chamber of Commerce - Essential business information
• Kauai Visitors Bureau
• Kauaʻi Beaches
• Ascents of Waialeale and Kawaikini. Hikes in the Alakai Swamp and Waimea Canyon
• List of movies and TV shows filmed on Kaua'i on imdb.
• More movies and TV shows filmed on Kaua'i on imdb.

	State of Hawaii Honolulu (capital)
Topics	Culture | Geography | Government | History | Music | Politics | People
Main Islands	Hawaii | Kahoolawe | Kauai | Lanai | Maui | Molokai | Niihau | Oahu
Northwestern Islands	French Frigate Shoals | Gardner | Kure | Laysan | Lisianski | Maro Reef | Necker | Nihoa | Pearl and Hermes
Communities	Hilo | Honolulu | Kahului | Kaneohe | Waipahu | Lihue | Pearl City
Counties	Hawaii | Honolulu | Kalawao | Kauai | Maui

Coordinates: 22°05′N, 159°30′W

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