George Belly Ukeke

George Belly ʻŪkēkē (c. 1813–1869) was an orator and politician of the Kingdom of Hawaii. Serving in the House of Representatives, he was known for his eccentric speeches.

Biography He was born around 1813 in Punaluʻu, Koʻolauloa District, located in the northeastern part of the island of Oʻahu. He lived with a man named Kaleohano Opio until his death; his relation to ʻŪkēkē is not identified in existing sources. Afterwards, he was sent to the American Protestant missionary Rev. John S. Emerson at Waialua and received "the usual common school education". He worked as a schoolmaster and was a regular church member. In 1867, he received a partial license to practice law.

ʻŪkēkē died on October 24, 1869, at his home in Kahano, Koʻolauloa, at the age of 56. His obituary described how he "has all his life, been identified, with the social and political interests of that district [Koʻolauloa]". On his deathbed, he requested that there will be no wailing, a traditional expression of Hawaiian mourning, over his body after his death and instead for his friends and neighbors to express their grief through hymns and prayers.