Aliʻi
Hereditary nobles of ancient Hawai'i / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For the plant known as ʻaʻaliʻi or aalii, see Dodonaea viscosa.
The aliʻi were the traditional nobility of the Hawaiian islands. They were part of a hereditary line of rulers, the noho aliʻi.
Cognates of the word aliʻi have a similar meaning in other Polynesian languages; in Māori it is pronounced "ariki" and in Tahitian ari'i.