What’s in a name? That question remains a powerful one, more than four centuries after William Shakespeare posed it.
The Hawai‘i Board on Geographic Names is scheduled to vote in its upcoming June meeting on its proposal to change the official name of the largest island in the Hawaiian archipelago from the “Island of Hawai‘i” to simply “Hawai‘i.”
“That’s what is planned. If there are extended discussions, decision-making could be moved to the following meeting,” Arthur Buto, who represents the state Office of Planning and Sustainable Development on the board, told the Hawaii Tribune-Herald.
The potential change was first proposed in March 2024 by Kapa Oliveira, who represents the University of Hawaii at Manoa on the board.
“As I understand it from the member who made that request, it’s for consistency with the names of the other islands,” Buto said.
While the board has members representing several stakeholders, such as UH- Manoa, Bishop Museum, the Department of Land and Natural Resources, Department of Hawaiian Home Lands, Office of Hawaiian Affairs and Land Survey Division, it is under the administrative umbrella of the Office of Planning and Sustainable Development.
An explanation of the proposed change posted online at planning.hawaii.gov/gis/hbgn says: “In March of 2024, members of the Hawai‘i Board on Geographic Names (‘HBGN’) expressed a desire to discuss the official name of the largest island in the Hawaiian Archipelago, the ‘Island of Hawai‘i.’ Members proposed a review of the name, given that it is the only island in the Hawaiian Archipelago whose name includes the phrase ‘Island of.’ Simply put, members wanted to consider changing the Primary Name to ‘Hawai‘i,’ in line with the naming convention of the other islands, e.g., Maui, O‘ahu, etc.
“We look forward to a meaningful and respectful discussion on this important topic,” the board said in an item on its website to notify the public of the agenda item on its upcoming meeting, scheduled for 2 p.m. June 11.
Asked if the proposed change has caused controversy and confusion, especially among those who are concerned that the island having the exact same name as the state itself might have a detrimental effect on Big Island tourism, Buto replied, “Sure, yeah.”
“To be clear, the purview of the Hawaii Board on Geographic Names is to designate the official names that state agencies are going to use, should be using on maps and documents,” he continued. “You know, 90% of the calls and the emails that I’ve received on the issue, people were saying ‘the Big Island.’ Most of them were saying ‘the Big Island.’ … In fact, nobody said ‘Island of Hawaii.’ It was either ‘Big Island’ or ‘Hawaii Island.’ It’s not meant to nor should it affect common usage.
“But it is confusing or can be confusing.”
Actually, one individual, James Tacker of Kealakekua, did mention “Island of Hawaii” in his email requesting the board not change the island’s name.
“Aloha, I’ve lived on the island of Hawaii for many years. Why do you think you can change the name?” Tacker wrote. “This is an undemocratic process. Residents of Hawaii I’ve spoken to dislike this idea. Please don’t change it.”
Theresa Holderread of Kailua-Kona said if island residents had learned about the name change proposal earlier, “the committee would have been flooded with emails against it and thinking it’s some sort of April Fools joke.”
“Sadly many of us had it brought to our attention on Easter,” Holderread testified via email. “… To have this agenda item on a committee that probably most of us have never heard about and that takes place in Honolulu is not pono. … It’s already confusing if someone asks you where you are going and you say Hawaii and people then say, ‘where in Hawaii’. Calling it by its nickname, Big Island, is way more effective; changing it now is only going to create more confusion.”
While UH-Manoa has a seat on the board, with its member proposing the change, the University of Hawaii at Hilo, which is in the county seat of the island that would be affected, isn’t represented.
Angela Faanunu, assistant professor of sustainable tourism at UH-Hilo, told the Tribune-Herald that the island also has the name Moku O Keawe, which predates Western contact.
“I don’t understand why the original name of this island is not used, since that would solve everybody’s problems,” Faanunu said. “When you’re talking about a name, that’s significant. And I’d be worried about or concerned about the process that they’re using to determine what the name is.
“If they want to change the name of Hawai‘i Island, they should open it up to the state’s residents, lineal descendants, everyone, to have a say in what that name should be. It’s not just something you give options for and say, ‘OK, choose.’ If this is to represent what the people want, then the people should be consulted on what their thoughts are.”
Larry Kimura, professor of Hawaiian language and Hawaiian studies, said the name of Hawai‘i for the archipelago goes back to the Hawaiian conqueror who united the islands.
“You know, our good king, Kamehameha, when he was asked, ‘What shall your kingdom be called?’ he said, ‘I shall name it after my island, the Island of Hawai‘i,’” Kimura said. “He, and I’m referring back to Kamehameha, named his kingdom after his island, where he was born and raised, the Island of Hawai‘i. And I guess that’s probably the reason the state is concerned about the confusion.
“And then, tourists come and they think, they think the whole state — they’re landing in Honolulu, going to Waikiki — they’re in Hawai‘i. And that’s correct, to a certain extent, because that’s the official name. And then, there’s the Island of Hawai‘i, and I guess that became the official name so they could distinguish between all of these.”
Testimony on the proposed name change can be submitted via email to arthur.j.buto@hawaii.gov. Send postal mail testimony to Office of Planning and Sustainable Development ATTN: Hawai‘i Board on Geographic Names, P.O. Box 2359, Honolulu, HI 96804-2359.
