Niihau Island in Hawaii history. Jewelry charm of the magical island of Niihau. Memorialization, museumification and controversy surrounding the incident

This is a selection of islands that are somehow unusual and famous. The list is in no particular order as each island is unique in its own way. So this one is really more like a grocery list than a “countdown from ten to one” list. The islands listed were also chosen because they are not well known, which explains why, for example, Easter Island is not on the list - everyone has already heard of it! So, the most unusual islands are waiting for you...

Niihau Island

The westernmost of the eight main Hawaiian Islands, Niihau (pronounced "Nee-ee-haw") differs from the other seven in that it is privately owned. Having been purchased by Elizabeth Sinclair from the Kingdom of Hawaii in 1864, it is one of the most unusual islands in the world. Visitors are rarely allowed to visit Niihau, which is why it is also called the “Forbidden Island”. Although, in recent years, the island has begun to receive a very limited flow of tourists participating in safari. Niihau's population hovers around 130 people who speak their native Hawaiian language.

Niihau is the westernmost and seventh largest of the inhabited Hawaiian Islands. From the point of view of the territorial division of the United States, Niihau belongs to the state. The island is located 17.5 miles from, and its area is 180 square kilometers. Niihau has several lakes that provide excellent habitat for many birds, including the Hawaiian coot, stilt and Hawaiian duck. The island is home to several endemic and endangered species. The U.S. Census Bureau has designated Ni'ihau and some neighboring islands as a seabird sanctuary.

In 2000, the island's population was 160 people. In 2010, this figure increased to 170 people
Scottish landowner Elizabeth Sinclair bought the island of Niihau in 1864 from the Kingdom of Hawaii and has been passed on by inheritance ever since. The island now belongs to the Robinson family. During World War II, a funny incident occurred on the island: a Japanese plane crashed on the island, but its pilot survived and single-handedly terrorized the entire population of the island for about a week.

The inhabitants of Niihau Island are known as the original speakers of the Hawaiian language. The island itself is quite closed and not many people can get to it: mainly local residents and their relatives, as well as US Navy personnel who are based on the Hawaiian islands and some government officials. Due to Niihau's closed nature, it received the nickname "Forbidden Island". However, since 1987, Niihau has become accessible to tourists: a limited number of safari tours go on sale each year.

Geographical position

Niihau is located 29 kilometers west of. Also approximately one kilometer north of Niihau is the small uninhabited island of Lehua. The maximum height of the island is 390 meters.

Scientists have determined that the island is 4.9 million years old, while the neighboring island is older: it is already 5 million years old. Niihau itself is essentially the top of an extinct volcano.

Climate

Niihau's climate is arid. Due to the characteristics of the flow of air masses, it rarely rains. The fact is that Niihau is located in the rain shadow. This means that the island is dependent on cyclones that come here from other regions. However, there are also long periods of drought. Thus, one of the officers of the famous navigator James Cook, George Vancouver, in his notes, reported that sometime in 1792, the naval population left the island due to severe drought and the famine that arose because of it.

Flora and Fauna of the Island

Like other arid islands, for many centuries the island had no trees at all, as reported by James Cook in 1778. However, the grandfather of the island's current owners, Aubrey Robinson, planted 10,000 trees in one year across most of the island. Aubrey's efforts slightly changed the climate of the island and it became less arid, and some of the trees took root. As a result, the island became home to birds, some of which are now endemic.

Due to its swampy terrain, Niihau is home to the Hawaiian coot, stilt, Hawaiian duck, and the endangered Hawaiian monk seal. The island's owners, the Robinson family, believe that its privacy and shoreline features contribute to better survival of the monk seal in the US Hawaiian sanctuaries. By the way, the monk seal itself was on the verge of extinction due to its capture by people.

The island is also home to the Eland antelope, oryx, maned boar and wild sheep. Hunting for these animals is offered by the owners of the island in safari format.

Story

Indigenous peoples lived on the Hawaiian islands even before meeting Europeans. Colonization practically did not affect Hawaii and local peoples continued to live as before. In 1795, the Hawaiian islands were united into a single kingdom, which, however, did not include the islands of Niihau and. In 1810, after a series of military clashes, the last two independent islands became part of the Kingdom of Hawaii.

In 1864, Niihau Island was purchased by landowner Elizabeth McHuston Sinclair for $10,000. After this purchase, the art of weaving mattresses was lost. It was on Niihau that it was believed that “the best mattresses in Polynesia” were woven.

In 1915, Elizabeth Houston's grandson closed the island to most visitors. Even relatives of people living on the island could come to Niihau only with special permission. The current owners of the island are Bruce and Keith Robinson.

The story of a Japanese pilot who crashed and was eventually killed by local residents gave rise to the popular US song You Can’t Conquer Niihau, Nohow (You Can’t Conquer Niihau).

Niihau Island has maintained political relations with the United States since 1924. The US Navy base was built here and training was conducted

Population

There are about 130 permanent residents on the island. Almost all of them are native Hawaiians. Their main livelihoods are fishing and agriculture.

There is no rent on the island and meat is part of the residents' social security, meaning it is also free.

There are no roads on the island and no telephone service. The main mode of transport is horses, and electricity is generated by solar water. There is no running water on the island and

sewer system. Water is either brought to the island or it comes as rainwater.

There are also no hotels or shops on the island, and all food is delivered by barge.

Most of the island's residents speak Hawaiian as their native language. Some also speak English as a second language.

Radio and television signal reception on the island is limited; it catches little and poorly. Part of the population works on the island. There are also schools and hospitals there.

Economy

The island's main source of income is the lease of land from the US government on which the missile defense installation is located. Local residents also make souvenirs and jewelry that are sold on other islands (By the way, these products are very expensive and popular).
Also, the source of income for the local population is cattle breeding and fishing (mostly mullet is caught here).

Tourism on Niihau

Since 1987, a limited number of safari packages have been sold to the island. Tourists are transported by A109 helicopter for half a day

In 2004, only one island resident did not vote in favor of George W. Bush.

In 1944, the island was considered as a candidate for UN headquarters

On the opposite side of the last of the Hawaiian straits, Kualakahi (Kauai Island), another, last, westernmost of the Hawaiian islands, small Niihau, seems to be floating on the sea, but the way there is closed.

On this island, as well as on the very tiny Kahoolawe, “entry to foreigners is strictly prohibited.”

Two islands are inaccessible to foreigners for various reasons

1. Kahoolawe

The smallest of the eight Hawaiian Islands. It contains Lake Halulu, the only lake in Hawaii. The television series Lost was filmed here.
The island was devastated by soldiers and goats. This small, rather arid piece of land was taken over by two white tenants in the 19th century and began raising sheep and then goats on it. Insatiable animals in a short time completely destroyed all the vegetation of Kahoolawe, gradually turning it into a real desert with dry, reddish sand.

When the pastures of Kahoolawe were exhausted, The island was taken over by American military aviation and the navy. United States Air Force pilots and United States Navy gunners have been using Kahoolawe as a target for their bombing training missions for decades.
Thus the goat-eaten island was finally devastated. I don't know if there is any hope that Kaho'olawe will ever rise from the "dead" and become like the rest of the Hawaiian Islands. In any case, it is completely clear why visiting this unfortunate, now so inhospitable island is strictly prohibited. strewn with hundreds and thousands of unexploded bombs, grenades and torpedoes.

Although it is currently still uninhabited and off-limits, Kahoolawe was returned to the state in 1994. On March 18, 1981, the island was added to the United States National Register of Historic Places.
At that time, there were 544 sites on the island of archaeological Kahoolawe - the island of rains, which washed its rock into relict saprolite plateaus, which provided Kahoolawe truly extraterrestrial landscapes that attract trekkers to its shores.

2. Niihau

The second of the inaccessible Hawaiian islands is Niihau.

And, unlike Kahoolawe, this "forbidden island" is privately owned. That is why visiting the island is strictly limited. The island's population is 230 people.

I saw him across the Kualakahi Sound, and he did not at all give the impression of being dead. Nor did he suffer the tragic fate of Kahoolawe. Rather, we can say that fate played a strange joke on the island.

Once upon a time, all of Niihau became the property of one woman, and under rather unusual circumstances. This woman's name is Elizabeth Sinclair Robinson. She is originally from Scotland. This energetic captain's widow successfully raised sheep. After the death of her husband, Elizabeth loaded everything she had onto the sailing ship Betsy: children, grandchildren, sheep and goats, as well as a piano - the memory of her parents! – and a chest with gold coins. Mrs. Sinclair took the helm of the sailboat and set off on a journey. And what a time! From cold Scotland she headed for the distant warm seas of Oceania. At first, "Betsy" dropped anchor off the coast of New Zealand, but Mrs. Sinclair decided to travel the entire Pacific Ocean on her ship. In 1863, the sailing ship Betsy arrived in Honolulu.
The captain's widow liked the Hawaiian Islands at first sight. In turn, she immediately endeared herself to the then ruler of the archipelago. Deep mutual sympathy formed the basis for the purchase and sale of Niihau. Widow Sinclair purchased the entire island for just ten thousand dollars!

Moreover, the king offered her the southern coast of Oahu, including the port areas of Honolulu and Waikiki. However, for this vast territory the ruler, despite his sympathy for the Scottish woman, demanded fifty thousand dollars. But since, as countless anecdotes say, the Scots are stingy, the price seemed too high to Mrs. Sinclair, and the deal did not go through..

Only a hundred years have passed since then, and the price of this land has increased no less than a million times. And for fifty billion, hardly anyone could buy the famous Waikiki today, not to mention Honolulu with its port. However, for the thrifty Mrs. Sinclair, the sum of fifty thousand dollars was too much, so she was satisfied with the island of Niihau.

Niihau as seen from Kauai

After the death of the enterprising woman, Niihau remained the private property of her family. The Robinsons (a surprisingly appropriate surname for the owners of a Pacific island!) are still the owners of this westernmost of the Hawaiian islands. And, I must say, fortunately. The Robinsons banned visits to Niihau. First of all, in order to protect its inhabitants (only purebred Hawaiians live here) from the fruits of the so-called “civilization”, so generously reaped on the other islands of this archipelago.

At the time when the enterprising Elizabeth acquired Niihau, the Hawaiians living on it had already been converted to the Christian faith. They dressed “Christianly”, but in all other respects they continued to observe their customs. Nothing has changed since then. The strict ban is still in force, and thanks to it, only purebred Hawaiians live on Niihau today. Everywhere on the island, only the Hawaiian language is heard, moreover, its ancient dialect.

Niihau, adjacent to Kauai, the wettest area on earth, is suffering - how ironic! - from lack of water. Therefore, the inhabitants of the island do not cultivate the land, but raise sheep (thirty thousand heads), cattle and, in addition, Arabian horses. Fortunately, such an achievement of civilization as the car has not taken root on Niihau: there is not a single car on the entire island! There are no police or prison here.

Niihau

Residents of the island completely voluntarily abandoned such “joys of life” as alcohol and tobacco (there is only one exception: a foreigner, the director of a local school, the inhabitants of Niihau Island are allowed to smoke cigars in his own office). There are no televisions or cinemas on Niihau. Until the end of the Second World War there was not a single telephone or radio! The receivers that the public uses today are battery-powered. Until recently, communication with the outside world (that is, in this case, with Kauai) was maintained (and this in the 20th century!) in an absolutely amazing way: signs were transmitted using fires lit on both sides of the strait separating the forbidden island from Kauai. Recent times have been marked by some progress in the relationship between Niihau and the inhabitants of the neighboring island: messages are now sent to Kauai by carrier pigeons.

This “splendid solitude” of Niihau was disrupted—fortunately, only for a few short hours—during the war. As is known, fighting in the Pacific Ocean flared up after Japan's surprise attack on the Hawaiian Islands - on the naval base at Pearl Harbor. At that time, the Polynesians living on Niihau did not have a single radio. It is not surprising that they had no idea about any bombing of the capital, much less a declaration of war.

In turn, the residents of Kauai were so amazed by the news that the radio brought that they forgot to inform their neighbors about what had happened (this could only be done with the help of fire). News of the war did not take long to arrive on Niihau. To save his life and his plane, one of the Japanese pilots who took part in the attack on Pearl Harbor landed on the island. More than once in Hawaii I heard stories about the adventures of this Uninvited Guest Niihau, the first stranger to enter the forbidden island. As a matter of fact, the story that happened to the Japanese on Niihau has already turned into a legend known throughout the archipelago. I know so many of its variants that I would not even dare to defend the one that seems to me the most truthful and tells about a kind of “battle for Niihau” in full accordance with historical reality.
However, let's return to the beginning of this amazing story and to its hero - the Japanese pilot who took part in the treacherous attack on Pearl Harbor. Running out of fuel, the pilot made a last-minute emergency landing on Niihau. During landing he lost consciousness. The Hawaiians looked at the uninvited guest with interest and took possession of his tablet with maps and other documents.
Having come to his senses, the pilot was surprised to find that he found himself on an unknown island owned by the Americans. He realized that the small territory was inhabited only by Polynesians, who at first glance seemed to him to be very primitive, but determined creatures: they took away his tablet with documents. The Japanese immediately realized that on the entire island, perhaps, not a single gun or pistol could be found! He, a warrior of the imperial army, had a machine gun in his hands - in this situation the weapon was very formidable. He demanded:
- Return the cards, otherwise I’ll shoot!

However, neither his words nor the machine gun made any impression on the Hawaiians. Then the pilot put the muzzle of the machine gun to the old woman’s chest, but she calmly began to read a prayer. The Japanese chose a man from the crowd who, it seemed to him, was probably involved in the theft. The suspect's name was Kanaele. The pilot cursed at him, but Kanaele, like the rest of the Hawaiians, did not understand a word of Japanese. Then the imperial warrior flew into a rage and shot at the disobedient islander. The bullet hit the thigh, but the Polynesian did not bat an eyebrow. The pilot fired again and wounded Kanaele in the groin. The third shot hit him in the stomach. Only then did the pilot force Kanaele to pay attention to himself. The Hawaiian grabbed the pilot by the throat and threw him against the stone wall with all his might. The pilot died immediately. What happened to Kanaele? Before losing consciousness from pain, he managed to say:
– Never shoot a Hawaiian more than twice, he might get angry on the third!

Thus, the inhabitants of the island of Niihau, professing the peace-loving philosophy of aloha, won their first victory over the Japanese. After Kanaele smashed the pilot's head against a stone wall, peace reigned on the island again. From that moment to this day when I am writing these lines, four decades have passed, and during this time uninvited guests have no longer appeared on Niihau. True, in 1960, another pilot disappeared along with his plane in this area of the archipelago. On this occasion, a carrier pigeon was sent from Kauai to ask whether the missing pilot had accidentally ended up on Niihau. The inhabitants of the island sent a lapidary reply in telegraph style with the same dove. It contains the whole philosophy on which their existence is based: “There is not a single stranger on the island. We are not waiting for anyone."

Even in our time, when people have already visited the moon, it is impossible to set foot on the land of Niihau. I must say that I took this strict prohibition especially hard. The thing is, this is not my first book about Hawaii. Many years ago I wrote the story of a young Hawaiian man, and it was set on this island. As far as I know, this is the only book set on Niihau. However, even its author does not have access there.

It is not surprising that the ban on visiting Niihau gives rise to all sorts of legends and rumors about the mysteries of this island. There were always people who, at any cost, sought to unravel the mystery of the island, to penetrate it in any, often completely incredible way: they sailed here on private submarines or tried to land on the shore in small inflatable boats, but all attempts were unsuccessful. Niihau Island still stubbornly keeps its secret.

However, the answer is not so difficult: the desire to faithfully preserve one’s traditions, one’s customs, one’s language, one’s way of life is quite understandable. This “secret” could be adopted from the inhabitants of Niihau by the peoples of some other, much more developed and progressive countries, for there is no truer loyalty than loyalty to oneself.

Niihau

Today Niihau is still the same environmentally friendly island with bicycles and solar panels, inhabited by indigenous people. The village of Puuavi is an excellent place to experience the ancient culture of the Hawaiians, and the shores of the picturesque Lake Halulu will enhance your stay on Niihau with its beauty.
However, you can visit the island only with an invitation from a member of the Robinson family or a native Hawaiian living on Niihau.

/the article uses excerpts from

books by M. Stingle "Enchanted Hawaii"

Niihau woof Niihau
File:Map of Hawaii highlighting Niihau.svg
21°54′ N. w. / 160°10′w. d. / 21.900; -160.167 21.900° N. w. 160.167° W d.
Coordinates:	Archipelago
Hawaiian Islands	Water area
Pacific Ocean	A country USA 22x20px
USA	Region

Hawaii	Square
179.9 km²	Highest point
381 m	Population (2009)
130 people	Population density
0.723 people/km²

Population

Lua error in Module:Wikidata on line 170: attempt to index field "wikibase" (a nil value). As of 2009, about 130 people permanently reside on the island. Almost all of them are ethnic Hawaiians and live in the island's largest settlement, the village of Puuwai.(English) Russian

The native language of the island's population is a dialect of Hawaiian, which differs slightly from modern literary Hawaiian. Today, Niihau is the only island in the archipelago whose main language is Hawaiian.

Some residents of the island have radios and televisions, but the use of the latter is virtually limited to watching videotapes and DVDs due to poor coverage. Sometimes, during severe droughts, the population of Niihau is completely evacuated to Kauai before the first rainfall can replenish the local water supply. Niihau has a school providing a full 12 years of education. Like other buildings on the island, the school is also fully powered by solar panels. The number of students varies from 25 to 50, as many families live part of the time on Kauai. In addition, some students from Niihau are constantly enrolled in 2 schools on the island of Kauai.

Owners of the island

Since 1864, the island has been the private property of the Robinson family. Robinson Family).

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Notes

Links

Niʻihau, the last Hawaiian island. - Press Pacifica, 1987. - ISBN 0-916630-59-5.

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Excerpt describing Niihau

I looked in fascination at this beautiful, brave, amazingly gifted woman, unable to hide the sorrowful tears welling up in my eyes... How did “people” dare to call themselves PEOPLE, doing this to her?! How did the Earth even tolerate such criminal abomination, allowing itself to be trampled on without opening up its depths?!
Isidora was still far away from us, in her deeply wounding memories, and I honestly didn’t want her to continue telling the story any further... Her story tormented my childhood soul, forcing me to die a hundred times from indignation and pain. I wasn't ready for this. I didn’t know how to protect myself from such atrocity... And it seemed that if this whole heart-tearing story didn’t stop right away, I would simply die without waiting for its end. It was too cruel and beyond my normal childhood understanding...
But Isidora, as if nothing had happened, continued to talk further, and we had no choice but to plunge with her again into her distorted, but so high and pure, unlived earthly LIFE...
I woke up very late the next morning. Apparently the peace that the North gave me with its touch warmed my tormented heart, allowing me to relax a little, so that I could meet the new day with my head held high, no matter what this day brings me... Anna still did not answer - apparently Karaffa firmly decided not to allow us to communicate until I break down, or until he has some great need for it.
Isolated from my sweet girl, but knowing that she was nearby, I tried to come up with different, wonderful ways to communicate with her, although in my heart I knew very well that I would not be able to find anything. Caraffa had his own reliable plan, which he was not going to change, in accordance with my desire. Rather, it’s the other way around - the more I wanted to see Anna, the longer he was going to keep her locked up, not allowing the meeting. Anna changed, becoming very confident and strong, which scared me a little, because, knowing her stubborn fatherly character, I could only imagine how far she could go in her stubbornness... I so wanted her to live!.. So that Caraffa’s executioner did not encroach on her fragile life, which had not even had time to fully bloom!.. So that my girl still has only the future...
There was a knock on the door - Caraffa was standing on the threshold...
– How did you rest, dear Isidora? I hope your daughter's proximity has not caused any trouble to your sleep?
– Thank you for your concern, Your Holiness! I slept surprisingly well! Apparently, it was Anna’s closeness that calmed me down. Will I be able to communicate with my daughter today?
He was radiant and fresh, as if he had already broken me, as if his biggest dream had already come true... I hated his confidence in himself and his victory! Even if he had every reason for this... Even if I knew that very soon, by the will of this crazy Pope, I would leave forever... I was not going to give in to him so easily - I wanted to fight. Until my last breath, until the last minute allotted to me on Earth...
- So what did you decide, Isidora? – Dad asked cheerfully. – As I told you earlier, this determines how soon you will see Anna. I hope you won't force me to take the most brutal measures? Your daughter deserves her life not to end so early, isn’t it? She really is very talented, Isidora. And I sincerely would not want to cause her harm.
– I thought you had known me long enough, Your Holiness, to understand that threats will not change my decision... Even the most terrible ones. I may die without being able to bear the pain. But I will never betray what I live for. Forgive me, Holiness.
Karaffa looked at me with wide eyes, as if he had heard something not entirely reasonable, which surprised him very much.
– And you won’t feel sorry for your beautiful daughter?! Yes, you are more fanatical than me, Madonna!..
Having exclaimed this, Caraffa stood up abruptly and left. And I sat there, completely numb. Not feeling my heart, and not being able to hold back my racing thoughts, as if all my remaining strength was spent on this short negative answer.
I knew that this was the end... That now he would take on Anna. And I wasn’t sure if I could survive to endure all this. I didn’t have the strength to think about revenge... I didn’t have the strength to think about anything at all... My body was tired and didn’t want to resist anymore. Apparently, this was the limit, after which a “different” life began.
I really wanted to see Anna!.. To hug her at least once goodbye!.. To feel her raging strength, and to tell her once again how much I love her...
And then, turning around at the noise at the door, I saw her! My girl stood straight and proud, like a stiff reed that an approaching hurricane is trying to break.
- Well, talk to your daughter, Isidora. Maybe she can bring at least some common sense into your lost mind! I give you one hour to meet. And try to come to your senses, Isidora. Otherwise, this meeting will be your last...
Karaffa did not want to play anymore. His life was put on the scales. Just like the life of my dear Anna. And if the second did not matter to him, then for the first (for his own) he was ready to do anything.

The Hawaiian archipelago consists of several islands. One of the most mysterious and interesting is the island of Niihau. This island is the seventh largest among all the islands of this archipelago, its area is almost one hundred and eighty square kilometers. Moreover, the island is one of the most sparsely populated. According to official data, only about two hundred and fifty people live on Niihau. This number of inhabitants is due to the fact that only native Hawaiians can live on the island.

The history of Niihau Island is interesting; in 1863, Queen Kamehameha IV decided to sell the island and it was purchased by Elizabeth Sinclair, who lived on a neighboring island, for only ten thousand dollars. Subsequently, the heirs, the Robinson family, began to own the island. It is the owners of the island who try to preserve the traditions and cultures of the Hawaiian people. Moreover, it is here that the Hawaiian language is not only the first language, but also the only one today.

The main mystery of Niihau Island is that the island is closed, that is, only native Hawaiians or people invited by island residents or members of the Robinson family can visit it. Niihau Island in Hawaii is called the “forbidden island”, which is the name by which it became known throughout the world. If you do not have an invitation from its inhabitants, you can see this island only at a distance, that is, during a helicopter ride or while snorkeling. You can also take a boat ride near the island, but you cannot approach it within a certain distance. If you are a scuba diving enthusiast, you can enjoy the beauty of the underwater world around the island without going ashore.

The vegetation of Niihau Island is not as diverse as on other islands of Hawaii, since the island is quite dry. Shell Leia can be found on the island's beach. This shell has a high value among shell flower collectors. One sink can be valued at up to several thousand dollars. The island's inhabitants mostly work on the ranch of the island's owner, Robinson. Livestock is raised here and fruits and vegetables are grown. The island's inhabitants also engage in fishing and hunting. For hunting they use ropes and nets that they weave with their own hands, spears and knives. At the same time, there are absolutely no shops, cars or hotels on the island. Residents of Niihau Island travel exclusively by bicycle or on foot.

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