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My Expanding List of Things I Find Intriguing About Lānaʻi
- The islands full Hawaiian name is “Lānaʻi o Kaululaʻau” meaning “Kaululʻau’s Conquest Day”. The name is in honor of the legend of young chief Kaululaʻau, who outsmarted and ridded the island of its evil man-eating spirits.
- Captain Charles Clerke spotted Lanai on February 25, 1779 as the HMS Resolution was leaving Hawai’i, eleven days after Captain James Cook was killed in Kealakekua.
- In 1868, India gifted King Kamehameha V, eight axis deer. Today axis deer on Maui, Moloka’i, and Lana’i number in the tens of thousands.
- In 1922, James Dole purchased the island of Lānaʻi for $1.1 million and established the world’s largest pineapple plantation.
- In 1930, Lānaʻi was exporting over 65,000 tons of pineapple per year. The island’s last harvest as an industry was in 1992.
- 98% of Lānaʻi is now privately owned. Oracle founder and billionaire Larry Ellison owns 98% of the island, while the state owns the other 2%.
- Lānaʻi has 2 Four Seasons Resorts - Four Season Resort Lanai and Sensei Lanai.
I add new discoveries to my growing list here after I verify sources.
Geeky Stats I Find Interesting About Lānaʻi
Name: Lānaʻi
Hawaiian name: Lānaʻi o Kaululaʻau
Nick name: The Pineapple Island
Population: 3,000+
Area: 140 sq miles
Highest elevation: 3,366 ft (Lānaʻihale)
Largest town: Lānaʻi City
Flower: Kauna`oa (Cuscuta sandwichiana)
Island color: `Ālani (orange)
Airport:
Lānaʻi Airport (LNY)
Temperature at (source: NOAA Climate Data):
Lānaʻi Airport
Average Temperature: 71.5 F
Ave Low Temperature: 63.3 F
Ave High Temperature: 79.7 F
Hottest Months: August/September
Coldest Months: January
Annual Rainfall: 15.5 inches
Driest Month: July/August
Wettest Month: November/January