The official gives the signal. Two players step toward each other, each holding a pole in both hands, and press the centers of the poles together. Nothing pads the head. Nothing pads the body. Nothing pads the hands. The pole runs six to nine feet long.
Kākā Lāʻau
Kākā means "to strike; to dash; to beat; to whip." Lāʻau is "a general name for what grew out of the ground such as wood, trees." Together the term names "spear fencing; to fence."
Equipment. Anciently, a six to nine foot pole was used in kākā lāʻau. There was no padded equipment on the head, body, or hands for protection against a blow from the poles. The only protection that was available to the fencer was his skill with the stick.
The rules.
At the official's signal, the players, holding the spears with two hands, approach each other and press the center of their spears against each other.
Offensively, a player is awarded a point when he touches either end of his stick on his opponent's body.
Defensively, he may use his pole to block or parry his opponent's attempt to score a point.
The winner is determined by a pre-arranged number of points before the match.
The number of points that decided the match was agreed to before the first touch. The player who reached it first won.
The Spear Man in Stone
A petroglyph drawing of a spear man is among the figures recorded with this game.
Kaka laʻau is one of the ten events in the Hawaiian Decathlon Card Set.
Makahiki Games
Sources
Lorrin Andrews, A Dictionary of the Hawaiian Language
Mary Kawena Pukui and S. Elbert, Hawaiian Dictionary
Charles W. Kenn, "Ancient Hawaiian Sports," The Mid-Pacific Magazine
Donald K. Mitchell, Na Paʻani Kahiko O Hawaii — Ancient Sports of Hawaii