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Nainoa Thompson

Nainoa Thompson
Nainoa Thompson (center) with actor Jason Scott Lee (left) and artist Layne Luna (right). Photo taken in 2003 at Hilo, Hawaiʻi.
Born
Charles Nainoa Thompson

March 11, 1953
Honolulu, Hawaii, United States
EducationUniversity of Hawaiʻi (BA)
OccupationShip navigator in the Polynesian traditions
SpouseKathy Muneno
Children2
FatherMyron "Pinky" Thompson
RelativesClorinda Low Lucas (maternal grandmother)

Charles Nainoa Thompson (born March 11, 1953) is a Native Hawaiian navigator and the president of the Polynesian Voyaging Society.[1] He is best known as the first Hawaiian to practice the ancient Polynesian art of navigation since the 14th century, having navigated two double-hulled canoes (the Hōkūleʻa and the Hawaiʻiloa) from Hawaiʻi to other island nations in Polynesia without the aid of western instruments.[2]

Early life and career

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Hōkūleʻa sailing off Honolulu, 2009

Charles Nainoa Thompson was born on March 11, 1953, in Honolulu, Hawaii.[3][4] His mother was Laura Kalaukapu Low Lucas (daughter of Clorinda Low Lucas), and his father was Myron "Pinky" Thompson.[5][6] Thompson is a direct descendant of Alexander Adams and James Harbottle, foreign advisors of the Kingdom of Hawai'i, rancher John Palmer Parker, and King Kamehameha I; his Hawaiian lineage was also be further traced back to voyagers from Mataiea in the southern coast of Tahiti.[7] He graduated from Punahou School in 1972[4][8].

Thompson earned a BA degree in ocean science in 1986 from the University of Hawaiʻi.[4][8] Thompson was trained by master navigator Mau Piailug from the island of Satawal[4]and Bishop Museum Planetarium lecturer Will Kyselka[9].

His first solo voyage was from Hawaiʻi to Tahiti in 1980. Since then, Thompson has been the lead navigator on the subsequent voyages of Hōkūleʻa, including the Voyage of Rediscovery from 1985 to 1987.[10]

On March 18, 2007, Thompson and four other Native Hawaiian navigators were inducted into Pwo as master navigators. The ceremony was conducted by Piailug on Satawal.[11]

In June 2014 he was made a commander of the Order of Tahiti Nui for his work with the Polynesian Voyaging Society.[12]

Thompson serves as the chair of the Board of Trustees for Kamehameha Schools (a post that his father Myron "Pinky" Thompson also held), and a member of the Board of Regents for the University of Hawaiʻi.[13]

Family and personal life

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Thompson is married to KHON-TV2 television anchor Kathy Muneno. They are the parents of twins.[14]

The success of the Hōkūleʻa's leg trip from Rarotonga landing at Waitangi on 5 December 1985 has earned him honorary membership with other crew of the canoe among the Te Tai Tokerau Māori as part of a sixth iwi named the Ngāti Ruawāhia (lit. "Tribe of the Arcturus") inducted by James Hēnare.[15][16][17]

References

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  1. ^ Parker, Laura (2015-11-02). "A Hawaiian Canoe Crosses the Oceans, Guided by Sun and Stars". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2025-07-20.
  2. ^ McAvoy, Audrey (2025-03-07). "How a canoe helped turn Hawaiian culture into a source of pride and even influenced Hollywood". The Seattle Times. Retrieved 2025-07-20.
  3. ^ Low, Sam; Sam Low (2007). "Nainoa Thompson's Path to Knowledge: How Hokulea's Navigator Finds his Way". In Howe, K. R. (ed.). Vaka Moana: Voyages of the Ancestors. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press. ISBN 978-0-8248-3213-1.
  4. ^ a b c d Arnold, Kathleen R. (2015-02-03). "Charles Nainoa Thompson (1953–)". Contemporary Immigration in America: A State-by-State Encyclopedia [2 volumes]. Bloomsbury Publishing USA. ISBN 979-8-216-06564-7 – via Google Books.
  5. ^ "Aunty Laura Thompson: He Haliʻa Aloha: He Haliʻa Aloha". Ka Wai Ola. September 1, 2020. Retrieved 2024-12-15.
  6. ^ "Clorinda Lucas, 90, services Monday". Honolulu Star-Advertiser (Obituary). February 26, 1986. p. 75. Retrieved 2024-12-15.
  7. ^ Tahiata, Heiarii; Gamblin, Mereini (6 July 2025). "Hōkūle'a a jeté l'ancre à Mataiea, terre ancestrale de son capitaine Nainoa Thompson". Franceinfo (in French). La 1ère. Retrieved 5 August 2025. ...il découvre qu'il est lui aussi descendant de cette lignée. « C'est bouleversant. Je ne m'y attendais pas. (...) J'ai besoin de prendre du recul pour y penser, parce que c'est tellement profond, tellement ancestral... C'est une très vieille généalogie. La mienne est ancienne mais vous, vous creusez vraiment dans la généalogie. Aujourd'hui, c'était une journée magnifique...extraordinaire », confie le capitaine.
  8. ^ a b Biography from Kamehameha Schools Archived 2005-11-01 at the Wayback Machine
  9. ^ "Crew Profiles: Nainoa Thompson". Polynesian Voyaging Society. 19 Feb 2025.
  10. ^ Thompson, Christina (2022). Sea People: The Puzzle of Polynesia. New York City: Harper, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers. ISBN 9780062060884.
  11. ^ Kubota, Gary T. (2007-03-18). "starbulletin.com | News | /2007/03/18/". archives.starbulletin.com. Retrieved 2025-07-20.
  12. ^ "Voyage de Hokule'a: Le " Aito " Nainoa THOMPSON, Commandeur dans l'ordre de Tahiti Nui" (in French). Tahiti Infos. 26 June 2014. Retrieved 22 October 2022.
  13. ^ "Native Voices Speaker: Charles Nainoa Thompson". nvinterviews.nlm.nih.gov. Retrieved 2025-07-20.
  14. ^ "Queen Kapi'olani's Living Gift to Island Keiki | MidWeek Cover Story | Midweek.com". archives.midweek.com. Retrieved 2025-07-20.
  15. ^ Thompson, Nainoa (2012). "Recollections of the Voyage of Rediscovery: 1985-1987". Hawaiian Voyaging Traditions. Polynesian Voyaging Society.
  16. ^ de Graaf, Peter (20 Nov 2014). "Hawaiian sailors renew ties with Te Tai Tokerau". Northern Advocate.[page needed]
  17. ^ "Moananuiākea: Aotearoa". Kaʻiwakīloumoku Hawaiian Cultural Center. Kamehameha Schools. Retrieved 21 June 2025.

Further reading

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  • Lal, Brij V.; Kate Fortune (2000). The Pacific Islands. Honolulu: University of Hawaiʻi Press. p. 81. ISBN 978-0-8248-2265-1.
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