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A sister’s loyalty faces a dangerous test when the goddess of volcanic fire sends her across the islands for love.
In this Hawaiian myth gathered by Nathaniel Bright Emerson, Pele makes her home in the crater of Kilauea. A dream carries her toward Kauai and Lohiau, a mortal chief known as a dancer. She wants him for her husband, but sends her youngest and favorite sister, Hiiaka, to bring him back.
Hiiaka accepts the errand out of loyalty. A gifted dancer and chanter, she travels across sea channels through a world of spirits and sacred song. Her courage is tested along the way. Meanwhile, her request that Pele protect a lehua grove links the journey to Hopoe, her close friend in Puna.
What you’ll discover
- A family of gods Meet divine sisters whose quarrels bring longing, anger and loyalty into the same story.
- Hiiaka on the road Follow a dancer and chanter whose devotion leads her into a dangerous island journey.
- The power of song Discover chants and hula that carry the old tales and shape Hiiaka’s unfolding adventure.
- A landscape with memory Explore cliffs, groves and lava fields, each with a name and a past.
- Love against loyalty Feel the pull between Pele’s desire for Lohiau and the duty her sister accepts.
Who will love it
Readers drawn to Hawaiian myth, Polynesian storytelling and volcanic landscapes will love this heroine's quest. So will anyone who enjoys ancient chants and tales of divided loyalties.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A sleeping spirit begins a quest
- Fire costs Pele her first home
- Desire begins with distant drums
- Hiiaka accepts a dangerous bargain
- The road exposes those who prey
- Care gives Hiiaka another kind of power
- Loyalty becomes a burden without return
- Songs carry feelings through the journey
- Love and power pull against loyalty
Who’s who
- HiiakaPele's youngest sister, a poet, healer and fighter, who agrees to fetch a lover for her sister and grows into her own power.
- PeleThe fire queen of Kilauea, proud and quick to anger, who sends her sister on a dangerous errand of love.
- LohiauA handsome chief of Haena on Kauai, a gifted dancer and surfer, who falls under Pele's spell.
- Wahine-oma'oA cheerful young woman who meets Hiiaka on the road and becomes her loyal friend and helper.
- Pau-o-pala'eHiiaka's gentle attendant, appointed by Pele, who prays for her mistress in the thick of battle.
- PaoaLohiau's closest friend, a drummer who swears to avenge his chief and later follows his call across the sea.
- Pele-ulaA seer and patroness of the hula at Kou, who once loved Lohiau and tries to win him again.
- Malae-ha'a-koaA lame fisherman of rank at Haena who recognizes Hiiaka's power and welcomes her with a feast and a chant.
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Pele and Hiiaka: A Myth From Hawaii
by Nathaniel Bright Emerson · 1915
A girl sent to fetch a dead man for her volcano goddess sister must fight dragons and her own heart.
Medium level5–10 hours to read20 languages
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“Travelers should sleep on the road, so they can rise and go on.”
In short
Picture a goddess asleep in a lava cave while her spirit chases the sound of drums across the open sea. It leads her to a hula hall on Kauai, where a handsome chief sits among the dancers.
Pele and Hiiaka: A Myth From Hawaii at a glance
- Reading time
- About 5 h 10 min4 h 5 min fast, 6 h 10 min slow
- Length
- 73,900 words
- Library level
- Medium longer sentences, everyday words
- First published
- 1915by Nathaniel Bright Emerson
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). How long the classics take to read · Updated
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
Pele flees Kahiki and finds a home
Hawaiian myth says that Pele, the fire queen who builds the islands, is a foreigner. She is born in Kuai-he-lani, a floating land in the distant homeland called Kahiki. Her mother is Haumea, and her brothers and sisters are gods of great power.
From childhood Pele studies how fire is made by the hearth of the firekeeper Lono-makua. Her older sister Namaka, a goddess of the sea, fears what this ambition will bring. When Namaka comes home, she finds that Pele has flooded part of their land with lava. Pele must flee, and the family sails across the sea with the youngest child Hiiaka aboard.
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Details
- First published
- 1915
- Language
- English
- Level
- Medium level
Cite this edition
Emerson, Nathaniel Bright. Pele and Hiiaka: A Myth From Hawaii. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/pele-and-hiiaka-a-myth-from-hawaii.
Emerson, N. B. (2026). Pele and Hiiaka: A myth from Hawaii. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/pele-and-hiiaka-a-myth-from-hawaii (Original work published 1915)
Emerson, Nathaniel Bright. Pele and Hiiaka: A Myth From Hawaii. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/pele-and-hiiaka-a-myth-from-hawaii.
@book{emerson2026pele,
author = {Emerson, Nathaniel Bright},
title = {Pele and Hiiaka: A Myth From Hawaii},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/pele-and-hiiaka-a-myth-from-hawaii},
note = {First published 1915}
}
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What is Pele and Hiiaka about?
It tells how the volcano goddess Pele sends her youngest sister Hiiaka from Hawaii to Kauai to fetch a chief named Lohiau. Along the way Hiiaka fights dragons, heals the dead and faces a hard choice between loyalty and love.
Who are Pele and Hiiaka in Hawaiian myth?
Pele is the fire goddess of the volcano Kilauea, who builds the islands with lava. Hiiaka is her youngest sister, a healer, poet and dancer, whom Pele loves and tests in this story.
Is Pele and Hiiaka a true story, and when was it written?
It is a myth, not history. Emerson gathered the tale from Hawaiian storytellers, newspapers and chants, and published it in the early twentieth century, keeping many songs in the original with English versions.
The author
Nathaniel Bright Emerson
1839–1915 · American physician and Hawaiian folklorist
Nathaniel Bright Emerson (1839–1915) was an American physician and writer born in Waialua, Oahu, in the Hawaiian Islands. He lived and worked in Hawaii. He wrote about Hawaiian traditions and mythology. His books include Unwritten Literature of Hawaii, published in 1909, and Pele and Hiiaka: A Myth From Hawaii, published in 1915.
“Travelers should sleep on the road, so they can rise and go on.”
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