With a Handkerchief and Bottlecaps, Uncle John Keeps an Ancient Hawaiian Game Alive

https://southseattleemerald.org/arts-culture/2025/10/14/with-a-handkerchief-and-bottlecaps-uncle-john-keeps-an-ancient-hawaiian-game-alive

With a Handkerchief and Bottlecaps, Uncle John Keeps an Ancient Hawaiian Game Alive

Alex Garland
Published on:
Oct 14, 2025, 1:50 pm

When we met Uncle John Kaohelauli'i on Oct. 11 at Marination in Columbia City, he carried a handkerchief, the same one he takes everywhere he goes. On it, black and white circles, which act as the playing board of an ancient game, can reveal lessons his ancestors knew by heart.

The game is Kōnane, and though it may look like checkers, it's nothing like it. Traditionally, the white pieces are coral from the ocean. The black ones represent volcanic rock from the mountains. Together, they show how Hawaiians thought about their world.

"Checkers is a very aggressive game. It's about consumption," Uncle John said during an afternoon training session. "Kōnane is the opposite: It's the Hawaiian way of thinking. In Kōnane, you have consumption, but you have to manage that consumption for long-term sustainability. So it is a totally different way of thinking."

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Everything about Kōnane, which can be played on a grid of any size, reflects how Hawaiians see the world. "When you grow up in Hawaiʻi, there are two values. Never turn your back to the ocean, take only what you need." Grab too many pieces, and you lose. Take only what serves you, and you might win.

The board itself tells a story. "It's intermingled. It's not this side versus that," Uncle John points out. "For the Hawaiians, it's like, we are not going to survive if we are working against each other, we will survive as a people if we work together."

… more …

https://www.hawaiiancheckers.com/about-uncle-john