An Englishman Is Captured By The Magic Of Hawaii with Kaliko Beamer-Trapp

Kaliko Beamer-Trapp was born on the Isle of Wight, England. He moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, joined a performing group named Dances of the Pacific, and spent the following nine years as a performer of Polynesian music and dance in California and also in group tours of England, Spain, Mallorca, Hawaii, and Fiji. In 1994 he moved to the island of Hawaii at the invitation of well-known Hawaiiana expert and cultural historian Aunty Nona Beamer (1923-2008). Being in Hawaii brought about a deep affection for things Polynesian, and Kaliko focused his studies particularly on the languages and cultures of Hawaii and the Marquesas Islands (Te Henua ʻEnana). He attended the University of Hawaii at Hilo and joined the Hawaiian Studies department at the University of Hawaii both as a student and an employee in 1994. In 1996, he became the editor for Hawaiian language curriculum at the Hale Kuamoʻo, a Hawaiian language center on the university campus. That same year, Kaliko was adopted into the Beamer family in Waipiʻo Valley, after the late Louise Beamer, Aunty Nona's mother, suggested privately to Aunty Nona, "I wish Kaliko could be my moʻopuna (grandson)." He speaks as an interpreter if a local language person wants to speak in Hawaiian in court. As a musician, he also understands how mele and oli music and chant are an important part of the language and are a big part of hula.

To learn more about the work of Kaliko Beamer-Trapp go to www.oleloonline.com.

Host: Justine Willis Toms       Interview Date: 4/24/2019       Program Number: C0478

More from Kaliko Beamer-Trapp

A full one-hour Flagship program on this subject is available for purchase and download:

Hawaii: Diving into Its History and Culture with Kaliko Beamer-Trapp