Niihau Island
Niihau is a privately owned island in the chain that makes up Hawaii. The island has been owned by the Robinson family for over 150 years, and currently houses approximately 160 Hawaiian natives who practice lei pūpū craftsmanship and speak traditional Hawaiian as their primary language. Other than these residents, the only people commonly allowed to visit the island are the Robinson family and their relatives, U.S. Navy personnel, government officials, and occasional invited guests. This strictness, combines with the WWII-era “Niihau incident” – when a Japanese fighter pilot who’d participated in the bombing of Pearl Harbor crashed on the island and took several hostages before being captured – have given the island an almost “urban legend” status.