Množina: Hawaiis

1. A state in the United States in the central Pacific on the Hawaiian Islands; Also called: Aloha State.
2. The largest and southernmost of the Hawaii islands; has several volcanic peaks; Also called: Hawaii Island.
Pacific state of the US; nicknamed Aloha State
area 16,800 sq km/6,485 sq mi
capital Honolulu on Oahu
towns and cities Hilo
physical Hawaii consists of a chain of some 20 volcanic islands, of which the chief are:
(1) Hawaii, noted for Mauna Kea (4,201 m/13,788 ft), the world’s highest island mountain (site of a UK infrared telescope) and Mauna Loa (4,170 m/13,686 ft), the world’s largest active volcanic crater;
(2) Maui, the second largest of the islands;
(3) Oahu, the third largest, with the greatest concentration of population and tourist attractions—for example, Waikiki beach and the Pearl Harbor naval base;
(4) Kauai; and (5) Molokai, site of a historic leper colony
features (1) Hawaii (or Big Island), with Hawaii Volcanoes national park, including Mauna Kea (with telescopes that make Hawaii a world center for astronomy), the active volcanoes Mauna Loa and Kilauea, the world’s most active volcano; Kau Desert; the Waipio Valley with waterfalls; Honokaa (where the first macadamia trees were planted 1881); Puukohola national historic site (temples built 1791); Lyman House and Museum (1839); Mokauaikaua Church (1836); Hulihea Palace (the king’s summer residence, 1880s); (2) Maui, with Haleakala national park; the Alexander and Baldwin Sugar Museum; Wailuku historical district; Lahaina (with a banyan tree planted 1873); (3) Oahu, the most populated of the islands, and the most popular with tourists, including Honolulu, with Waikiki beach, the Mission House Museum (home of the first US missionaries, dating from the 1820s), Kawaiahao Church (1842), Iolani Palace (1882, the only royal palace in the US), Aliiolani Hale (the old judiciary building), Honolulu Hale (1929, the City H
all), the Honolulu Academy of Arts, and Pearl Harbor naval base, including the USS Arizona Pearl Harbor Memorial; (4) Kauai, a former plantation town, with Waimea Canyon (1,097 m/3,600 ft deep, 3.2 km/2 mi wide, and 16 km/10 mi long), and Waioli Mission (founded 1837 at Hanalei); (5) Molokai, a leper colony until 1888, with the Meyer Sugar Mill (1878), and the Kalaupapa national historic park Surfing originated in ancient Hawaii.
industries sugar, coffee, pineapples, flowers, women’s clothing; tourism is the chief source of income
% European, 25% Japanese, 14% Filipino, 12% Hawaiian, 6% Chinese)
language English
religion Christianity; Buddhist minority
history A polynesian kingdom from the 6th century, the islands were united as one kingdom in the late 18th century. Because of US, British, and French rivalry over the islands, Kamehameha III placed Hawaii under US protection 1851. Under the Reciprocity Treaty imposed 1887, in exchange for duty-free sugar transport, Pearl Harbor was ceded to the US, who established a naval base there. Republican forces overthrew the monarchy 1893 (for which the US officially apologized 1993), and the republican government agreed to annexation by the US 1898. It became a US territory 1900, and the 50th state of the Union 1959. Japan’s air attack on Pearl Harbor 7 Dec 1941 crippled the US Pacific fleet and turned the territory into an armed camp, under martial law, for the remainder of the war.
Capt James Cook, who called Hawaii the Sandwich Islands, was the first known European visitor 1778. By 1842, the indigenous population had fallen by 90% since Cook's arrival. This was mainly because of the introduction of new diseases, to which the population had no natural immunity, in particular smallpox, measles, tuberculosis, leprosy, and syphilis. Another factor, especially in the earlier part of the 19th century, was the exodus of young men who enlisted as sailors on foreign ships.