Larry Kimura


Larry Kimura is a professor of the Hawaiian language and Hawaiian studies at the University of Hawaii, Hilo in the Ka Haka ʻUla O Keʻelikōlani, College of Hawaiian Language. Kimura has been an advocate for the preservation of the Hawaiian language, and was a co-founder of ʻAha Pūnana Leo.
Astronomers consulted with Kimura to create Hawaiian names for the first observed interstellar asteroid, ʻOumuamua, the first imaged black hole, M87*, and other notable objects discovered or imaged from Hawaii.

Pōwehi (M87*)

In April 2019, astronomers operating the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope and Canada–France–Hawaii Telescope, such as Doug Simons, approached Kimura to give a Hawaiian name to the recently imaged black hole M87* in the galaxy Messier 87, in recognition of the fact that the telescope was on Mauna Kea. Kimura came up with the name "Pōwehi", from pō 'darkness' or 'night' and wehi 'darkness' or 'adornment' to suggest "the adorned fathomless dark creation" or "embellished dark source of unending creation", found in the intensified form pōwehiwehi in the Kumulipo, a Hawaiian creation chant recorded in the 18th century.
The governor of Hawaii declared 10 April 2019 to be "Pōwehi Day". Unlike Oumuamua, however, the name Pōwehi has not been submitted to the IAU, as the IAU has no provision for accepting names for galaxies or black holes.