anchialine A type of shoreline pond or pool without surface connection to the sea but having waters of measurable salinity and showing tidal fluctuations.
bivalve Any member of the class Bivalvia of the mollusks, with a right and left shell valve hinged at the dorsal line, e.g., clam. See also mollusk.
chain A unit of length equal to 66 ft. Some surveyors in Hawai‘i used chains 50, 75, or 100 ft. long, a practice that causes confusion.
clay Fine earth particles less than 0.002 mm.
coconut The palm, Cocos nucifera.
Contact A period in Hawaiian history marked by the arrival of Captain James Cook in 1778 and characterized by the social changes that eventually brought about the end of traditional Hawai‘i.
dower That which a man gives to his wife at the church door at the time of his marriage.
eucalyptus The historically introduced gum tree, genus Eucalyptus, at least 30 species of which have been introduced to Hawai‘i, primarily for reforestation.
fathom A unit of length equal to 6 ft.
fee simple An estate of inheritance, held without limitation to a particular class of heirs; unconditional inheritance.
guava The historically introduced tree or shrub, Psidium guajava, common in Hawai‘i today.
ironwood A historically introduced large tree, Casuarina equisetifolia.
mollusk Any member of the phylum Mollusca of invertebrate animals with a soft unsegmented body usually enclosed in a calcareous shell.
pre-contact Prior to ad 1778 and the first written records of the Hawaiian Islands made by Captain James Cook and his crew.
sisal A plant, Agave sisalana, cultivated for its stiff fibers.
site The fundamental unit of archaeological investigation, a location that exhibits material evidence of past human activity.
stone Rock fragment ranging from 250 mm to less than 600 mm.
sugarcane A grass, Saccharum officinarum, widely grown in warm regions as a source of sugar. See also kō in Hawaiian Terms.