George Naʻope facts for kids
George Lanakilakeikiahialiʻi Naʻope (born February 25, 1928 – died October 26, 2009) was a very important Hawaiian teacher. He was born in Kalihi, Hawaiʻi and grew up in Hilo, Hawaii. People knew him as a master of kumu hula (hula teacher) and a great Hawaiian chanter. He worked hard to protect and share Hawaiian culture around the world.
He taught hula dancing for more than sixty years. His students were in Hawaiʻi, Japan, Guam, Australia, Germany, England, North America, and South America.
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Learning and Teaching Hula
Naʻope was a deep scholar of ancient hula. This is the hula style danced before 1893. He started learning hula at just three years old. His great-grandmother, Mary Malia Pukaokalani Naʻope, taught him. She lived to be over 100 years old.
At age four, he studied with Mary Kanaele. She was the mother and teacher of Edith Kanakaʻole. When he moved to Oʻahu at ten, he studied for ten years. His teacher there was Joseph Ilalaʻole. After high school, Naʻope moved to Honolulu. He opened the George Naʻope Hula School. Later, he continued his studies with Kumu Hula Lokalia Montgomery and Tom Hiona.
Naʻope began teaching hula when he was only thirteen. His family did not have much money. So, he taught hula for fifty cents a week. This helped him pay for school. He also taught chant and kahiko (ancient hula) to the Ray Kinney dancers. He even traveled with Ray Kinney.
Founding the Merrie Monarch Festival
In 1964, Naʻope started the Merrie Monarch Festival. This is a big event held every year. It lasts a week and celebrates traditional Hawaiian arts and crafts. It also has a three-day hula competition.
The festival became very popular. It was also a key part of the Hawaiian Renaissance. This was a time when Hawaiian culture became strong again. Naʻope said he started the festival to save hula. He felt hula was becoming too modern.
He wanted to honor David Kalakaua, who was King of Hawaii. King Kalākaua brought hula back to Hawaiʻi. Naʻope said, "There was nothing here in Hilo." So, he decided to have a festival just for hula. He did not know it would become one of the biggest events in Hawaiʻi.
Awards and Honors
Naʻope received many awards for his work. The Buddhist temple Honpa Hongwanji Mission of Hawai'i named him a Living Treasure of Hawai'i. This means he was a very special person in Hawaiʻi.
President George W. Bush and the Smithsonian Institution called him a "Treasure of Hawaiʻi." In 2006, he received a National Heritage Fellowship. This is the highest honor in the United States for folk and traditional arts.
In 2007, Naʻope created the Halau Hula Is Hawai'i Trust. He also started Hula Is Hawai'i, LLC. He wanted his entire estate to go into this trust. He also founded the Humu Moʻolelo. This was a journal about hula arts published four times a year.
Death
George Naʻope passed away on October 26, 2009. He was 81 years old. He died from cancer. He lived in Hilo, Hawaiʻi until his death.
See also
- Myrtle K. Hilo
