Feature image from Jekyll Island State Park
What’s in a name? Well, in Hawaiian culture a LOT! Names are evocative of the history, heritage, and cultural place in which the named thing exists. This is especially important in lei materials. The kaona, the veiled meaning hidden in the name, is as important in crafting a lei as is the appearance of the material.
The popular lei material (and ornamental garden plant) Tillandsia usenoides, was introduced to Hawaii in the 19th Century. Its Hawaiian name, umiʻ umi-o-Dole [OOH-mee OOH-mee oh DOH-leh] (Dole’s Beard), came from its resemblance to the beard of Sanford B. Dole, a well-known politician of the day.
ʻDue to the ease with which it can be grown, crafted into lei, and its beautiful silver-grey sheen, umiʻ umi-o-Dole soon became a popular material for lei making. This same silvery grey color was sought when hinahina-kū-kahakai, the native beach heliotrope, became more difficult to access due to shoreline development. Thus ʻ umiʻ umi-o-Dole came into use as a substitute. Real hinahina is a heliotrope, not a bromiliad.
Of course, any time something is popular, there will be those who capitalize on it. In the late 20th and early 21st centuries some people began calling ʻ Umiʻ umi-o-Dole “Pele’s hair” in order to sell more. Some even went so far as to claim that it is a Hawaiian plant and a traditional offering to Pele. It is not. Pele’s hair is the spun volcanic glass threads from our volcanoes. The American bromeliad has become a traditional material for lei making, but it is not a traditional Hawaiian plant.
Just as we Hawaiians wish for our inoa to be treated with respect, it is important that we do the same for the names from other cultures. Itla-okla is one of names used by the indigenous people where Tillandsia usneoides is endemic. I suggest that we start using this as the common name.
ʻ Umiʻ umi-o-Dole, while a traditional Hawaiian name for this plant, hearkens to the name of a person who helped overthrow our Hawaiian government.
“Spanish moss” is innaccurate, the bromiliad is neither Spanish nor a moss, and has its heritage in a derogatory name the French gave to the Spanish.
“Hinahina” is confusing as it refers to several endemic plants.
“Pele’s hair” is a misnomer and applied to this introduced plant is disrespectful to Hawaiian culture.
“Itla-Okla” reminds us of the heritage of this plant which is culturally important to the indigenous peoples of its home range. For them it provided padding, weaving materials, medicine, and other uses. There is a Cajun legend of this plant.