How did outsiders first become aware of the Hawaiian language? How were they and Hawaiians able to understand each other? How was Hawaiian recorded and analyzed in the early decades after European contact? In The Voices of Eden, Albert J. Schutz provides illuminating answers to these and other questions about Hawaii's post-contact linguistic past.

The result is a highly readable and accessible account of Hawaiian history from a language-centered point of view that will prove indispensable for Hawaiian language scholars and students and appeal to the growing number of Hawaiians who are reclaiming their language.

Beginning with the observations of Captain Cook and his crew, continuing through the missionaries' profound effect on the language and its speakers, and ending with current issues of language policy, Schutz provides readers with not only a historical overview of Hawaiian but also an exhaustive analysis and critique of nearly every work ever written about the language.