Māla, Atelier & Friends
Kukui (Candlenut) | Aleurites moluccana
The kukui tree was named the official tree emblem of Hawai‘i because of its many uses for ancient Hawaiians—as a source of light, fuel, medicine, dye, and ornaments—and for the distinctive beauty of its light-green foliage, which adorns many mountain slopes. Kukui is a symbol of learning, protection, and peace.
Its nuts are highly versatile: they were used for lamp oil, lei-making, and as a relish known as ʻinamona. The Hawaiian word kukui means “lamp,” “light,” or “torch.” The nuts contain about 80% oil, making them an important source of traditional lighting fuel and giving the tree its common name, “candlenut tree.” In addition, the nuts and other parts of the tree were used for medicine, such as a laxative, and for making dyes.
The nut’s outer covering yields a black dye, and the nuts themselves can be polished to make lei—black when ripe and white when immature. When baked, crushed, and mixed with salt, squid ink, and chili peppers, the kernels are eaten as ʻinamona, a traditional Hawaiian relish.
Nearly every part of the tree was utilized. The bark, flowers, and nuts were used medicinally, with uncooked nuts acting as a strong laxative. The inner bark provided a red-brown dye for kapa cloth, while bark gum strengthened the kapa. Soot from burned nuts was used as a black dye for tattooing and for painting designs on canoes and kapa. The leftover oil cake served as fertilizer, and the soft, light-colored wood of the trunks was used to make canoes.