Hawaiʻi - Hawaiian Language Research: Archives and Repositories

The library’s strength is on the history of Hawai‘i and the Pacific in the nineteenth century. It has fine collections of early voyages and travels, Hawaiian-language imprints, and newspapers published in Hawai‘i.

Special items include:
Journal of Alexander Liholiho (Kamehameha IV) on a voyage to the United States, England, and France, 1849–1850 (1 vol.)
Notebooks of William Charles Lunalilo (king of Hawai‘i), including diaries, letters, and poems, 1847–1853 (110 p.)

A research Library containing rare books, Manuscript Collections and other special collections. The general focus of the Library's collections is on the history of Hawai‘i from 1778 to 1900.

Special items include:
Hawaiian-language books, including the earliest imprints in the language, 1822 - 1900.
Hawaiian language letters from Native Hawaiian missionaries in the Pacific.

Bishop Museum Library and Archive is one of the richest and most varied collections of published works and primary source materials concerned with Hawai‘i and the Pacific.

Special items include:
HEN - The Hawaiian Ethnological Notes Collection, commonly called HEN, is comprised of Hawaiian language material, most of which was translated by Mary Kawena Pukui.
Audio and visual materials in the Hawaiian language.

Kamehameha Schools Archives opened in Midkiff Learning Center on the campus at Kapālama in 1992. At the legacy campus, Kamehameha Schools Archives is a historical repository for Kamehameha Schools. Kamehameha Schools Archives is open to all researchers. Digital information and images are available.


Includes a variety of unique collections related to Kamehameha schools including works and compositions in ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi.

Started as a loose collection of gifts, records and valuable materials handed down between administrations and librarians for decades, the Punahou Archives began to formalize in the 1950s. It is comprised of school publications, photographic and multimedia images, artifacts, institutional records and manuscript collections which explain the historical events, growth and development of Punahou School.

Also contains some works in ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi