Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument
Introduction
Text-to-speech Audio
Images
Map showing the boundary of the of the monument before its expansion in 2016.
The monument features coral reefs, shallow waters and abundant marine life.
Backstory and Context
Text-to-speech Audio
Papahanuimokuakea is an ancient tradition to the Hawaiian natives. The
word is derived from two Hawaiian creators, Papahanaumoku and Wakea. The name
Papahanaumoku is the Hawaiian people’s mother of nature; a god who created the
islands. Wakea is the father who created the sky. Both are united to signify the
island’s culture and honor the ancestors that once lived in Hawaii.
The monument was first called the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Marine National Monument but changed to its Hawaiian name, Papahanaumokuakea, one year later. The monument hasn’t always been under protection. Hawaii in 1903 had large amounts of birds that were being slaughtered for feathers and eggs. President Roosevelt created the Executive Order Act to protect the avian species. In 1940 Roosevelt declared The Bird Reservation in the Hawaiian Islands National Wildlife Refuge. In 2010, UNESCO officially designated Papahanaumokuakea as one of the top 26 heritage sites of the world.
Papahanaumokuakea has a rich maritime heritage. The waters hold deep treasures like shipwrecks and archaeological sites. One ship is the USS Maccaw at Midway. Divers explore the artifact and remember its brave history. The Marine National Monument shows great history offered by the wreckage, but mainly focuses on the present and future of the marine life. Papahanaumokuakea’s mission is, “To carry out seamless integrated management to ensure ecological integrity and achieve strong, long-term protection and perpetuation of NWHI ecosystems, Native Hawaiian culture, and heritage resources for current and future generations.”