How many place names are there in the Hawaiian Islands? Even a rough estimate is impossible. Hawaiians named taro patches, rocks, trees, canoe landings, resting places in the forests, and the tiniest spots where miraculous events are believed to have taken place. And place names are far from static--names are constantly being given to new houses and buildings, streets and towns, and old names are replaced by new ones.

It is essential, then, to record the names and the lore associated with them now, while Hawaiians are here to lend us their knowledge. And, whatever the fate of the...

Anatomia is the only medical textbook written in the Hawaiian language. Gerrit P. Judd, for a time the only medical missionary in the Islands, wrote the text in 1838 to teach basic anatomy to Hawaiians enrolled at the Mission Seminary (Lahainaluna School). Working from a standard elementary textbook of the time, Judd provided his students with more than a simple, straight translation. Rather than Hawaiianize Latin or English names and terms, he devised new vocabulary and explained medical functions and practices in words that would be readily understood by a Hawaiian.

Judd's use of...