He Ahupua?a Ke Mele: The Ahupua?a Land Division as a Conceptual Metaphor for Hawaiian Language Composition and Vocal Performance

By Keola Donaghy Abstract: This article examines how the elements and interactions of the natural world can used as metaphors for the formative processes of Hawaiian language composition and vocal performance. It will examine the composition Ka Wai A K?ne (“The Water of K?ne”) and its depiction of the movement of water through the ahupua?a (a pre-contact land division) to present a conceptual metaphor of the author's construction—mele (Hawaiian language composition) is ahupua?a (a hawaiian land division). This broad conceptual metaphor, the other related and underlying symbols, and the individual metaphoric statements that will be coined in this paper will provide a new means of interpreting and understanding these formative processes.