From the powerful opening words of the Kumulipo to the propulsive rhymes of contemporary slam poetry, Hapai na Leo celebrates a diverse range of voices that explore, carry, and regenerate Hawaiian culture.

This is a literary companion to Malcolm Nāea Chun’s historical and philosophical works, the Ka Wana series, published by the Curriculum Research & Development Group, and No Na Mamo, published by the University of Hawai’i Press. This anthology responds to Chun’s work with a wide range of voices and perspectives far-ranging in style, form, and generation. They address broad, yet specific, topics: sovereignty and power; economic and social relationships; identity and spirituality. While these perspectives represent particular stories and places, they remind us that people everywhere define themselves in ways large and small, public and private, individual and communal.