An excerpt from He Moolelo Kaao o Hiiakaikapoliopele from the Hawaiian-language newspaper Ka Hoku o Hawaii, published on November 23, 1926. Read by Kenji Cataldo.

In this excerpt from the epic tale of Hiʻiakaikapoliopele, Hiʻiaka shares that it was a kupua, or shapeshifter, named Pōhakuloa who was responsible for the Mākua girl’s death and explains to disbelieving locals that she will expel the kupua to prevent further harm.

For an English translation of the story of Hiʻiaka at Mākua by Kepā Maly, visit www.malamamakua.org/hiiaka.