What language does Niihau speak?

'mother tongue') is a dialect of the Hawaiian language spoken on the island of Ni?ihau, more specifically in its only settlement Pu?uwai, and on the island of Kaua?i, specifically near Kekaha, where descendants of families from Ni?ihau now live. Today, the Ni?ihau dialect is taught in Ke Kula Niihau O Kekaha.



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No one is allowed to visit Hawaii's Forbidden Isle—the 70-square-mile island, which on a clear day can be spied from Kauai's west coast—unless they are invited by Niihau owners the Robinson family, or by one of its 70 full-time Native Hawaiian residents.

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Ni'ihau High & Elementary School or Niihau Island School is a public K-12 school in Niihau, Hawaii, United States. It is operated by the Hawaii Department of Education.

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Niihau is now valued at $88 million, according to county tax records. The island's population has declined in recent decades in step with a shortage of jobs, according to the Niihau Cultural Heritage Foundation. Some residents make a living weaving prized Niihau shells into lei.

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the hawaiian language is critically endangered. With only around 2,000 native speakers now, UNESCO classifies Hawaiian as “critically endangered.” However, language preservation initiatives like immersion preschools are helping the language make a comeback.

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Most of the residents of Niihau live in or around the main settlement of Pu?uwai. There are no cars, no roads, no hotels, no power lines, no running water, no telephones and typically people there use bicycles or horses to get around.

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Don't Even Try. While Niihau would be a perfectly stunning island to book a vacation to, it's already owned by the Robinson family. That means any and all visiting is off-limits and they can legally have you removed if you enter without permission. Tours via helicopter are the only way to get a good look at this place.

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It is home to free-ranging wild boar, feral hybrid sheep, aoudad, eland and oryx. The pigs are decedents of those brought by the first Polynesian settlers centuries ago, but the sheep were introduced in 1864 as part of the Niihau Ranch cattle and sheep operation.

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No one is allowed to land on Niihau unless you are a resident of the island, a member of the Robinson family, or an invited guest. The Robinson family permits helicopter tours, but contact between the visitors and natives is not allowed. Fishermen and sailors may visit the island by sea, but are not able to land.

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Do people on Niihau pay taxes? On Wednesday the Kauai County Council approved legislation to impose an annual flat tax rate of $40,000 for Niihau based on a series of factors, including the island's contributions to agriculture and Hawaiian culture and its sparse use of county services.

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