Nalani Kanakaʻole | |
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Born | March 19, 1946 |
Occupation | Kumu hula |
Years active | 1960 – present |
Children | Kūhaʻo Zane |
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Nalani Kanakaʻole (born March 19, 1946) is a Hawaiian kumu hula at Hālau o Kekuhi. [1] The daughter of Edith Kanakaʻole, she leads Hālau o Kekuhi along with her niece Huihui Kanahele-Mossman. [2] In 1993, she and her sister, Pualani Kanakaʻole Kanahele, were jointly named National Heritage Fellows by the National Endowment for the Arts, which recognized them as "Hula Masters". [1]
Kanakaʻole was raised on homestead lands in Keaukaha, Hilo, Hawaii, in a traditional Hawaiian fashion. [3] She first learned hula from her grandmother, Mary Kekuewa Kanaele Fujii. She was 13 years old when her mother Edith Kanakaʻole started work as a hula teacher, and began teaching hula herself at the age of 14 in 1960. Her family spoke the Hawaiian language at home. [2]
In 1985, Kanakaʻole opened Sig Zane Designs alongside her husband [4] Sig Zane. [3]
In 1982, [4] Kanakaʻole and Sig Zane had a son, Kūhaʻo Zane. [5]