Kanaloa

In the traditions of ancient Hawaiʻi, Kanaloa is symbolized by the squid or by the octopus, and is typically associated with Kāne. It is also the name of an extinct volcano in Hawaiʻi.

In legends and chants Kāne and Kanaloa are portrayed as complementary powers (Beckwith 1970:62–65). For example: Kāne was called upon during the building of a canoe, Kanaloa during the sailing of it; Kāne governed the northern edge of the ecliptic, Kanaloa the southern; Kanaloa points to hidden springs, and Kāne then taps them out. In this way, they represent a divine duality of wild and taming forces like those observed (by Georges Dumézil, et al.) in Indo-European chief god-pairs like Odin–Týr and Mitra–Varuna, and like the popular yin and yang of Chinese Taoism.

Kanaloa is also considered to be the god of the Underworld and a teacher of magic. Legends state that he became the leader of the first group of spirits "spit out" by the gods. In time, he led them in a rebellion in which the spirits were defeated by the gods and as punishment were thrown in the Underworld.

Kanaloa kahoolawensis

Kanaloa kahoolawensis, the Ka palupalu o Kanaloa or kohe malama malama o kanaloa, is a species of flowering plant in the legume family, Fabaceae, subfamily Mimosoideae, tribe Mimoseae, and is endemic to Hawaii. Kanaloa is a monotypic genus with the only species Kanaloa kahoolawensis.

History

Kanaloa was discovered in 1992 by the botanists Ken Wood and Steve Perlman of the National Tropical Botanical Garden on Kahoʻolawe, a small island that was formerly used as a bombing range. Kahoʻolawe was a penal colony for the Hawaiian monarchy from 1826 to 1853, after which it was leased for ranching. Dry weather and ranching have devastated the island's vegetation. Only two wild plants of Kanaloa kahoolawensis have been observed growing on the island. The genus and species were formally named by Lorence and Wood in 1994. The genus name honors the Hawaiian deity Kanaloa, who according to legend used the island to rest and regain his energies. Scholars and native Hawaiian activists both agree that Kanaloa is from the original name "Kohemalamalama O Kanaloa"., which translates as the place or womb for the resuscitation of Kanaloa. According to Lorence & Wood (1994), Kanaloa means, "secure, firm, immovable, established, unconquerable...Such attributes are certainly essential for this plant to have survived in spite of the severe degradation of the island". The specific epithet kahoolawensis is from the island Kahoʻolawe where the first species was discovered.

Kanaloa manoa

Kanaloa manoa is a species of amphipod crustacean, and the only species in the genus Kanaloa.

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