Aboriginal – A people first to arrive in a particular region.  The Native population of the Hawaiian Islands is called aboriginal Hawaiians.  In the Hawaiian language, a full-blooded aboriginal Hawaiian is kanaka maoli, and a part aboriginal Hawaiian is hapa haole.

Agreement of restoration – An agreement entered into between Queen Lili’uokalani and President Grover Cleveland settling the illegal overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom government by the forces of the United States that aide and support an uprising of a minority group of people on January 17th, 1893. Under the agreement, the President would restore the Hawaiian Kingdom government as it stood on the day of the illegally landing of U.S. troops on January 16th, 1893, reassign the executive power to the Queen, and the Queen thereafter to grant amnesty to the insurgents.  Under international law, the Agreement of restoration, is a treaty, and under United States law, it is considered a sole executive agreement that does not require ratification from the U.S. Senate or approval of Congress to have the force and effect of a treaty.

Annexation – A formal act whereby a country or state declares its sovereignty over territory outside its own territory.  Unlike cession, whereby territory is granted or conveyed through treaty, annexation is a unilateral act.

Cession (cede) – The process by which a sovereign state or nation conveys territory to another sovereign state.  The evidence of the transfer of territory is a treaty or bi-lateral agreement between the state or nation as grantor, and a state, as grantee.

Colonization – Colonization is the building and maintaining of colonies in one territory by people from another country or state.  It is the process, by which sovereignty over the territory of a colony is claimed by the mother country or state and is exercised and controlled by the nationals of the colonizing country or state.  Through colonization there is an unequal relationship between the colonizing and the native populations that reside within its colonial territory.  These native populations are referred to as indigenous peoples and form the basis of the 2007 United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

Constitution – The organic and fundamental law of a nation or state, which may be written or unwritten, establishing the character and conception of its government, laying the basic principles to which its internal life is to be conformed, organizing the government, and regulating, distributing, and limiting the functions of its different departments, and prescribing the extent and manner of the exercise of sovereign powers.

Customary law – As distinguished from laws being developed at the top, customary law may have been introduced from the top but it develops at the bottom through widespread acceptance, custom, and usage.

 De-occupation – De-occupation is the political process by which the occupation of a sovereign independent state comes to an end.  This will take place when the control over governance of the territory is transferred from the occupying military government of the occupying state or country to the restored or returning legitimate government of the occupied state or country.  De-occupation is limited to restoration of the legitimate government and does not affect the sovereignty of the state or country, its national population, its territorial boundaries, nor its legal order as would the process of decolonization.

Executive Power – The power of a branch of government to execute and administer law.  According to article 31 of the Hawaiian Constitution.  “To the King belongs the Executive power”

Hawaiian – A person that belongs to the Hawaiian Kingdom, such as a national of the Hawaiian Kingdom, irrespective of race, color or creed, called a Hawaiian subject, or property that belongs to the Hawaiian Kingdom, such as territory.  In the Hawaiian language, a Hawaiian subject is translated as kanaka Hawai’i [Hawaiian person], and the Hawaiian Islands as ko Hawai’i pae ‘aina [Islands belonging to Hawai’i].

Independent State – A state that has absolute and independent legal and political authority over its territory to the exclusion of other states.  Once recognized as independent, the state becomes a subject of international law.  According to United States common law, and independent State is a people permanently occupying a fixed territory bound together by common law habits and custom into one body politic exercising, through the medium of an organized government, independent sovereignty and control over all persons and things within its boundaries, capable of making war and peace and of entering into international relations with other communities around the globe.

Indigenous – Originating in a particular region as opposed to aboriginal, which is first to arrive in a region.  Indigenous was often used to identify plants and animals, and aboriginal was used to identify people.

Insurgent – An individual who participates in a rebellion against the lawful authority of a government of a county of state.  Insurgency is a criminal act that falls under the crime of treason.  According to the Hawaiian Penal Code, “Treason is hereby defined to be any plotting or attempt to dethrone or destroy the King, or the levying of war against the King’s government, or the adhering to the enemies thereof giving them aid and comfort, the same being done by a person owing allegiance to this kingdom.”  The treason statute also states, “An alien, whether his native country be at war or at peace with this kingdom, owes allegiance to this kingdom during his residence therein, and during such residence, is capable of committing treason against this kingdom.”

International Law – A law that regulates relations between countries or states, who are called subjects of international law.  International law does not regulate private individuals, but rather subjects of international law, which include countries or states and international organizations, e.g. United Nations, Permanent Court of Arbitration, International Court of Justice, International Red Cross.

Joint resolution – A formal expression of the opinion or will of both House of Representatives and the Senate of the United States.

Judicial power – The power of a branch of government to resolve disputes under the law.  According to article 64 of the Hawaiian Constitution, “The Judicial Power of the Kingdom shall be vested in one Supreme Court, and in such Inferior Courts as the Legislature may, from time to time, establish.”

Law of Occupation – The laws administered by an occupying government whiting the territory of an occupied country of state, which includes the national laws of the occupied country of state and the international laws that regulate occupations, i.e. 1907 Hague Regulations and the 1949 Geneva Conventions.

Nationality – The status of belonging to a particular country or state, through citizenship, i.e. The nationality of a person, or property, i.e. the nationality of a ship.

Regency – A person of body of officials that represent a kingdom during the minority, absence, insanity, or other disability of a Monarch.  According to article 33 of the Hawaiian Constitution, “It shall be lawful for the King at any time when he may be about to absent himself from the Kingdom, to appoint a Regent or Council of Regency, who shall administer the Government in His name, and likewise the King may, by His last Will and Testament, appoint a Regent or Council of Regency to administer the Government during the minority of any Heir to the Throne: and should a Sovereign decease, leaving a Minor Heir, and having made no last Will and Testament, the Cabinet Council at the time of such decease shall be the Council of Regency, until the Legislative Assembly, which shall be called immediately, may be assembled, and the Legislative Assembly immediately that it is assembled shall proceed to choose by ballot, a Regent or Council of Regency, who shall administer the Government in the name of the King, and exercise all the Powers which are Constitutionally vested in the King, until he shall have attained the age of eighteen years, which age is declared to be the Legal Majority of such Sovereign.”

Sovereignty – Supreme authority exercised over a particular territory.  In International law, it is the supreme and absolute authority exercised through a government, being independent of any other sovereignty.  Sovereignty, being authority, is distinct from government, which is the physical body that exercises the authority.  Therefore, a government can be overthrown, but the sovereignty remains.

Sovereignty movement – A political movement of a wide range of groups in the Hawaiian Islands that seek to exercise self-determination under international law as a Non-self-governing unit, or to exercise internal self-determination under the 2007 United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.  The movement presumes that the Hawaiian Kingdom and its sovereignty were overthrown by the United States in January 17th, 1893, and therefore the movement is seeking to reclaim that sovereignty through de-colonization.  The movement does not operate on the presumption of continuity of the Hawaiian Kingdom as an independent state and the law of occupation, but rather on the aspiration of becoming an independent state or some form of internal self-determination within the laws of the United States.

Treaty – An agreement or contract between two or more governments of independent states formally signed by authorized commissioners, ratified by both governments, and an exchange of ratifications that will execute the contract.