These murals were completed as part of our Moʻolelo Murals Project. Our Moʻolelo Murals Project is no longer operating.
The intent of this page is as a community resource to learn more about our traditional moʻolelo (stories/ histories/ legends) that the art represents.
Moʻolelo carries teachings that can kōkua in the healing of our ʻāina and kaiāulu.
The moʻolelo presented are from a culmination of print and oral sources. We understand there can be variations of the same moʻolelo and we respect versions that differ than what we present.
YWCA Centennial Logo
The YWCA Centennial logo commemorates YWCA of Kauaʻi serving the people of Kauaʻi for 100 years. The logo was designed by Maile. To the Moʻolelo Murals team, the logo represents the interconnectedness of the past and the future.
Ohe Kapala on Hāʻupu
The kinloau (many nonhuman forms) of the Akua (god/goddess) Hina can be seen in the profile of a beautiful wahine found on Hā'upu mountain, mistakenly called Queen Victoria’s profile today.
Wāhine Hula
Next to the YWCA Centennial Logo and Palapalai fern (the kinolau of Laka, the steward of Hula) are hula dancers. These hula dancers were inspired by Hālau Ka Lei Mokihana o Leinaʻala who represents Kauaʻi at the Annual Merrie Monarch Festival.
Kamakahelei
Kamakahelei was the queen or Aliʻi Nui of Kauaʻi and Niʻihau in the 17th century. Kamakahelei was powerful because she had lineage from all of the islands which prevented Aliʻi from the other islands from coming to Kauaʻi for conquest.
Nāmāhoe and Hina
Akua Hina represents motherhood and is steward of the moon. Hina is associated with kuku kapa (beating kapa) like the kapa shown in the mural that is supplanted on Hāʻupu mountain. Hina is a prominent Akua.
Pōhaku Kuʻi ʻai and Kalo
Kalo (taro) is one of the most significant plants in Kānaka ʻŌiwi culture because Kalo is thought of as a literal ancestor to kānaka. The moʻolelo o Hāloa tells of the Akua Wākea (said to be of the father of the sky) and the Akua Hoʻohōkūkalani (meaning “to star the sky”) had a stillborn child named Hāloanaka.