O ahu (usually Oahu outside Hawaiian and Hawaiian English), known as "The Gathering Place", is the third largest of the Hawaiian Islands and most populous of the islands in the State of Hawai i. The state capital Honolulu is located on the southeast coast. Including small close-in offshore islands such as Ford Island and the islands in Kaneohe Bay and off the eastern coast, it has a total land area of , making it the 20th largest island in the United States. In greatest dimension, this volcanic island is long and across. The length of the shoreline is . The island is the result of two separate shield volcanoes: Wai anae and Ko olau, with a broad "valley" or saddle (the central O ahu Plain) between them. The highest point is Mt. Ka'ala in the Wai anae Range, rising to above sea level.
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O ahu (usually Oahu outside Hawaiian and Hawaiian English), known as "The Gathering Place", is the third largest of the Hawaiian Islands and most populous of the islands in the State of Hawai i. The state capital Honolulu is located on the southeast coast. Including small close-in offshore islands such as Ford Island and the islands in Kaneohe Bay and off the eastern coast, it has a total land area of , making it the 20th largest island in the United States. In greatest dimension, this volcanic island is long and across. The length of the shoreline is . The island is the result of two separate shield volcanoes: Wai anae and Ko olau, with a broad "valley" or saddle (the central O ahu Plain) between them. The highest point is Mt. Ka'ala in the Wai anae Range, rising to above sea level.
Introduction
The island is home to about 900,000 people (approximately 75% of the resident population of the state) and partly because of this, O ahu has for a long time been nicknamed "The Gathering Place". However, the term O ahu has no confirmed meaning in Hawaiian, other than that of the place itself. Ancient Hawaiian tradition attributes the name's origin in the legend of Hawai iloa, the Polynesian navigator credited with discovery of the Hawaiian Islands. The story relates that he named the island after a son.
The city of Honolulu—largest city, state capital, and main deepwater marine port for the State of Hawai i—is located here. As a jurisdictional unit, the entire island of O ahu is in the City & County of Honolulu, although as a place name, Honolulu occupies only a portion of the southeast end of the island (essentially, the Honolulu District). The island extends from Ka ena on the west end to Makapu u on the east. Well-known features found on O ahu include Waikīkī, Pearl Harbor, Diamond Head, Hanauma Bay, Kāne ohe Bay, and the North Shore.
History
O ahu was apparently the first of the Hawaiian Islands sighted by the crew of HMS Resolution on 18 January 1778 during Capt. James Cook's third Pacific expedition. Escorted by HMS Discovery, the expedition was surprised to find high islands this far north in the central Pacific. O ahu was not actually visited by Europeans until 28 February 1779 when Captain Clerke aboard HMS Resolution stepped ashore at Waimea Bay. Clerke had taken command of the ship after Capt. Cook was killed at Kealakekua Bay (Island of Hawai i) on February 14, and was leaving the islands for the North Pacific.
