Home Region: Polynesia (Oceania-Australia)

Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period

1778 CE 1819 CE

D G SC WF R CC

EQ 2020 us_kamehameha_k / USKameh

Preceding Entity: Add one more here.

1580 CE 1778 CE Hawaii III (us_hawaii_3) [None]

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General Description

Hawai’i, also known as the Big Island, is the largest island of the Hawaiian archipelago. Here, we consider the period of its history from 1778 to 1819. 1778 is the date of first European contact ‒ the arrival of Captain Cook ‒ while 1819 is the year of King Kamehameha I’s death. ^[1] ^[2] Kamehameha was a war chief and keeper of the war god Kūka’ilimoku who, in 1782, rose against King Kīwala’ō and managed to seize power over the Kohala and Kona districts of the Big Island. ^[3] Over the next three decades, Kamehameha waged several military campaigns, eventually unifying the entire archipelago (minus Kaua’i and Ni’ihau) in 1804. ^[4]
Population and political organization
In this period, Kamehameha I sat at the top of the political hierarchy. He was advised on secular affairs, including war, by the kālaimoku, who also oversaw the royal storehouses, while the kahuna nui was in charge of the king’s sacred duties and oversaw his temples and main gods. ^[5] Kamehameha did not introduce many changes to the traditional hierarchies, but he did appoint a number of governors to be his representatives on the other islands. ^[6] Each island was divided into districts under the control of high-ranking chiefs, the ali’i ’ai moku. These districts were in turn subdivided into territories ruled by lesser chiefs, the ali’i ’ai ahupua’a. Below this level, there were the konohiki, who were in charge of the small and largely self-sufficient ahupua’a territories. ^[7]
The population of the entire Hawaiian archipelago by Cook’s arrival was certainly very large, but there is a long-standing debate regarding exact numbers. Estimates range between 250,000 and 800,000. ^[8] The ’reasonably accurate’ first census of 1832 puts the archipelago’s population at around 130,000 people. However, we cannot project this figure backwards in time because the kanaka maoli (indigenous Hawaiian) population fell drastically after Europeans introduced diseases, such as smallpox, syphilis and measles, to which they had no immunity. ^[9] ^[8]

[1]: (Kirch 2010, 170, 174) Patrick V. Kirch. 2010. How Chiefs Became Kings: Divine Kingship and the Rise of Archaic States in Ancient Hawai’i. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.

[2]: (Kirch 2000, 300) Patrick V. Kirch. 2000. On the Road of the Winds: An Archaeological History of the Pacific Islands before European Contact. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.

[3]: (Kirch 2010, 118-19) Patrick V. Kirch. 2010. How Chiefs Became Kings: Divine Kingship and the Rise of Archaic States in Ancient Hawai’i. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.

[4]: (Kirch 2010, 116) Patrick V. Kirch. 2010. How Chiefs Became Kings: Divine Kingship and the Rise of Archaic States in Ancient Hawai’i. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.

[5]: (Kirch 2010, 50, 57) Patrick V. Kirch. 2010. How Chiefs Became Kings: Divine Kingship and the Rise of Archaic States in Ancient Hawai’i. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.

[6]: (Kuykendall 1938, 51) Ralph S. Kuykendall. 1938. The Hawaiian Kingdom, 1778-1854: Foundation and Transformation. Honolulu, HI: University of Hawai’i Press.

[7]: (Kirch 2010, 48-49) Patrick V. Kirch. 2010. How Chiefs Became Kings: Divine Kingship and the Rise of Archaic States in Ancient Hawai’i. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.

[8]: (Kirch 2010, 129-130) Patrick V. Kirch. 2010. How Chiefs Became Kings: Divine Kingship and the Rise of Archaic States in Ancient Hawai’i. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.

[9]: (La Croix and Roumasset 1990, 835) Sumner J. La Croix and James Roumasset. 1990. ’The Evolution of Private Property in Nineteenth-Century Hawaii’. The Journal of Economic History 50 (4): 829-52.

General Variables

Identity and Location

2 Utm Zone

1 Original Name

1 Capital

4 Alternative Name

Temporal Bounds

1 Peak Years

1 Duration

Political and Cultural Relations

1 Suprapolity Relations

1 Supracultural Entity

1 Polity Succession

1 Degree of Centralization

Language

1 Linguistic Family

1 Language

Religion

Social Complexity Variables

Social Scale

1 Population of the Largest Settlement

1 Polity Territory

1 Polity Population

Hierarchical Complexity

1 Settlement Hierarchy

1 Religious Level

1 Military Level

1 Administrative Level

Professions

1 Professional Soldier

1 Professional Priesthood

1 Professional Military Officer

Bureaucracy Characteristics

1 Specialized Government Building

1 Merit Promotion

2 Full Time Bureaucrat

1 Examination System

Law

1 Professional Lawyer

1 Judge

1 Formal Legal Code

1 Court

Specialized Buildings: polity owned

1 Market

1 Irrigation System

2 Food Storage Site

1 Drinking Water Supply System

Transport Infrastructure

1 Road

1 Port

1 Canal

1 Bridge

Special-purpose Sites

Information / Writing System

1 Written Record

1 Script

1 Phonetic Alphabetic Writing

1 Nonwritten Record

1 Non Phonetic Writing

Information / Kinds of Written Documents

1 Scientific Literature

1 Sacred Text

1 Religious Literature

1 Practical Literature

1 Philosophy

1 Lists Tables and Classification

1 History

1 Fiction

1 Calendar

Information / Money

1 Token

1 Precious Metal

1 Paper Currency

1 Indigenous Coin

1 Foreign Coin

1 Article

Information / Postal System

1 Postal Station

1 General Postal Service

1 Courier

Information / Measurement System

Warfare Variables (Military Technologies)

Fortifications

1 Wooden Palisade

1 Stone Walls Non Mortared

1 Stone Walls Mortared

1 Settlements in a Defensive Position

1 Modern Fortification

1 Moat

1 Fortified Camp

1 Earth Rampart

1 Ditch

1 Complex Fortification

1 Long Wall

Military use of Metals

1 Steel

1 Iron

1 Copper

1 Bronze

Projectiles

1 Tension Siege Engine

1 Sling

1 Self Bow

1 Javelin

1 Handheld Firearm

1 Gunpowder Siege Artillery

1 Crossbow

1 Composite Bow

1 Atlatl

Handheld weapons

Animals used in warfare

1 Horse

1 Elephant

1 Donkey

1 Dog

1 Camel

Armor

1 Wood Bark Etc

1 Shield

1 Scaled Armor

1 Plate Armor

1 Limb Protection

1 Leather Cloth

1 Laminar Armor

1 Helmet

1 Chainmail

1 Breastplate

Naval technology

1 Specialized Military Vessel

1 Small Vessels Canoes Etc

1 Merchant Ships Pressed Into Service

Economy Variables (Luxury Goods) Coding in Progress.

Religion Variables Coding in Progress.

Crisis Consequence Cases

2 Crisis Consequence

Power Transitions

3 Power Transition

Instability Events

3 Instability Event

NGA Settlements:

Year Range	Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k) was in:
(1778 CE 1819 CE)	Big Island Hawaii

Home NGA: Big Island Hawaii

General Variables

Identity and Location Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Utm Zone	4 Q Expert	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Utm Zone	5 Q Expert	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Original Name	Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period Expert	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Capital	None (Absent Capital) Expert	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Alternative Name	Kamehameha's Kingdom Expert	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Alternative Name	Owyhee Expert	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Alternative Name	Owhyhee Expert	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Alternative Name	Sandwich Islands Kingdom Expert	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Temporal Bounds Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More
Peak Years	1810 CE Expert
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Duration	[1778 CE ➜ 1819 CE] Expert
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Political and Cultural Relations Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Suprapolity Relations	us_kamehameha_k nominal allegiance to gb_british_emp_1	1810 CE 1819 CE
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Supracultural Entity	Kingdom of Hawaii - Post-Kamehameha Period Expert	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Preceding Entity 1580 CE 1778 CE	Hawaii III (us_hawaii_3) [None] Expert
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Degree of Centralization	unitary state Expert	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Language Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Linguistic Family	Austronesian Expert	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Language	Hawaiian Expert	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Religion Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More

Social Complexity Variables

Social Scale Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Population of the Largest Settlement	- Undecided	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Polity Territory	[15,000 to 16,600] km²	1800 CE
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Polity Population	[60,000 to 180,000] people	1800 CE
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Hierarchical Complexity Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Settlement Hierarchy	2	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Religious Level	2	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Military Level	[3 to 4]	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Administrative Level	5	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Professions Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Professional Soldier	Present	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Professional Priesthood	Present	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Professional Military Officer	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Bureaucracy Characteristics Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Specialized Government Building	Absent Inferred	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Merit Promotion	Present	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Full Time Bureaucrat	Present Uncertain	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Full Time Bureaucrat	Absent Uncertain	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Examination System	Absent Inferred	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Law Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Professional Lawyer	Absent Inferred	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Judge	Absent Inferred	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Formal Legal Code	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Court	Absent Inferred	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Specialized Buildings: polity owned Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Market	Unknown Suspected	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Irrigation System	Present	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Food Storage Site	Present Disputed	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Food Storage Site	Absent Disputed	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Drinking Water Supply System	Unknown Suspected	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Transport Infrastructure Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Road	Absent Inferred	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Port	Unknown Suspected	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Canal	Unknown Suspected	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Bridge	Unknown Suspected	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Special-purpose Sites Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More

Information / Writing System Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Written Record	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Script	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Phonetic Alphabetic Writing	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Nonwritten Record	Unknown Suspected	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Non Phonetic Writing	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Information / Kinds of Written Documents Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Scientific Literature	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Sacred Text	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Religious Literature	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Practical Literature	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Philosophy	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Lists Tables and Classification	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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History	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Fiction	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Calendar	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Information / Money Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Token	Present Inferred	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Precious Metal	Absent Inferred	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Paper Currency	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Indigenous Coin	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Foreign Coin	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Article	Present	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Information / Postal System Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Postal Station	Unknown Suspected	1778 CE 1819 CE
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General Postal Service	Unknown Suspected	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Courier	Unknown Suspected	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Information / Measurement System Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More

Warfare Variables (Military Technologies)

Fortifications Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Wooden Palisade	Present	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Stone Walls Non Mortared	Unknown Suspected	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Stone Walls Mortared	Unknown Suspected	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Settlements in a Defensive Position	Present Inferred	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Modern Fortification	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Moat	Unknown Suspected	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Fortified Camp	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Earth Rampart	Unknown Suspected	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Ditch	Present Inferred	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Complex Fortification	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Long Wall	absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Military use of Metals Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Steel	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Iron	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Copper	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Bronze	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Projectiles Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Tension Siege Engine	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Sling	Present	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Self Bow	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Javelin	Present	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Handheld Firearm	Present	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Gunpowder Siege Artillery	Present	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Crossbow	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Composite Bow	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Atlatl	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Handheld weapons Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More

Animals used in warfare Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Horse	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Elephant	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Donkey	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Dog	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Camel	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Armor Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Wood Bark Etc	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Shield	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Scaled Armor	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Plate Armor	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Limb Protection	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Leather Cloth	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Laminar Armor	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Helmet	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Chainmail	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Breastplate	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Naval technology Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Specialized Military Vessel	Present	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Small Vessels Canoes Etc	Present	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Merchant Ships Pressed Into Service	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Economy Variables (Luxury Goods)

Religion Variables

Moralizing Supernatural Punishment and Reward Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)
Moralizing Enforcement is Broad	Present	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Moralizing Supernatural Concern is Primary	Absent	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Moralizing Enforcement is Agentic	Present	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Moralizing Enforcement in This Life	Present	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Moralizing Supernatural Punishment And Reward	Present	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Moralizing Religion Adopted by Commoners	Present	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Moralizing Enforcement is Targeted	Present	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Moralizing Enforcement in Afterlife	Present	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Moralizing Religion Adopted by Elites	Present	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Moralizing Enforcement of Rulers	Absent Inferred	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Moralizing Enforcement is Certain	Present	1778 CE 1819 CE
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Human Sacrifice Kingdom of Hawaii - Kamehameha Period (us_kamehameha_k)

Variable	Coded Value / Certainty Tags	Year(s)	See More