ʻĀina is the Hawaiian word for land. Its literal translation is that which feeds.
In the Hawaiian belief system, ʻāina is the older sibling and kānaka (us) are the junior. It's up to the young to take care of their elders, and so it is kānaka who take care of ʻāina. And if it's done right, ‘āina returns the favor.
The land becomes that which feeds.
Brice Marden, Autumn (2015)