• Stories in the Stars: Constellations Hawaiian Style

    By Leilehua Yuen In January, four of Leilehua Yuen’s paintings of Hawaiian constellations were put on display in the Visitor Information Station of the Ellison Onizuka Center for International Astronomy. She began research for the illustrations more than 20 years…

  • May Day is Lei Day in Hawai‘i

    By Leilehua Yuen This year’s Hilo Lei Day Festival will be held on May 1, at Kalākaua Park, the original town square of Hilo, and the site of Hilo’s Lei Day celebrations in the 1920s. May 1, celebrated around the…

  • Ho‘ina Hōkūle‘a — Hōkūle‘a Returns

    By Leilehua Yuen Hōkūle‘a now begins her final leg of the Worldwide Voyage—traveling the Hawaiian Archipelago to approximately 30 ports. Her crew will get to share their adventures with some 100 schools on various islands. After circumnavigating the Earth in…

  • The Resilient Randy Parker

    By Leilehua Yuen Growing up surrounded by music, it was little wonder that Randy Parker became a professional musician. “My Father played ‘ukulele, and Mom played piano and ‘ukulele and danced hula. I liked the music they listened to. A…

  • Implements of Hula

    By Leilehua Yuen From ancient times, Hawaiian people have had a love of music and rhythm. This love was expressed through oli (chant), mele (song), and hula (dance). While many early visitors to the Hawaiian Islands were not trained in…

  • Hula is Pleasing Because of the Drummer

    By Leilehua Yuen Dancers gliding, hands gracefully depicting misty rains or delicate flowers. Feet grounding powerfully on the earth while knees thrust forward in the motion of a lava flow. Voices evoking the many moods of lyrics newly written or…

  • Health: Ke Ola Pono—Ka Niho

    By Leilehua Yuen I don’t care what “The Internet” says, don’t use a combination of baking soda and lemon juice to whiten your teeth. It’s the dental equivalent of using Brillo on your lacquerware. Sure, it will work the first…

  • Ke Ola Pono: Feast or Famine

    feast-or-famine

    By Leilehua Yuen In the Northern hemisphere, the season of feasting is over and we are now heading into a more ascetic phase. Whether this is through religious doctrine, or simply following the cycles of nature, it still holds true.…

  • Almanac in the Sky

    Like many peoples around the world, from ancient times Polynesians have been guided by the stars. The constellations move in predictable rhythms across the sky, with mathematical precision, unchanging over the course of many human lifespans. Weather patterns come and…

  • Wedding Lei

    The lei, that iconic symbol of our islands, is actually found in many cultures. Swiss maidens, Hindu priests, Thai brides and grooms, the flower children of the 60s, and Neanderthal of 60,000 years ago all have been noted for their flower…

  • A Royal Wedding

    One of the best documented royal weddings of Hawai‘i’s monarchy is that of Alexander Liholiho (King Kamehameha IV) and Emma Na‘ea Rooke. Their wedding captures the height of that romantic era in Hawai‘i’s history. On the morning of June 19,…

  • Ke Ola Pono: Makahiki Resolutions

    By Leilehua Yuen Makahiki, Christmas, and the New Year all are times of fresh beginnings. Many people make resolutions at this time to do better or be better in the coming year. While making resolutions is common around the world—according…

  • Makahiki: The Hawaiian Winter Holiday

    By Leilehua Yuen Long before Christmas was celebrated in Hawai‘i, we had our own winter holiday—the Makahiki. Makahiki can be a confusing word. It means “year,” “new year,” and also refers to the months-long season that heralds the new year…

  • Myths and Legends of Mauna Kea

    By Leilehua Yuen In English, when we speak of literature, we generally classify works as fiction or non-fiction—made up or true. How does one define true? Sometimes, a story that does not adhere to quantifiable data, yet draws on emotion…

  • Ke Ola Pono: Lā‘au Lapa‘au—What is it?

    By Leilehua Yuen What is lā‘au lapa‘au? Is it herbal medicine? “Witch doctor” stuff? Homeopathy? Bush medicine? Is it real? Bogus? Compatible with biomedicine? I have seen practices of lā‘au lapa‘au that would fit any of the above. Lā‘au lapa‘au…

  • ‘Ōhi‘a-Lehua Legend

    By Leilehua Yuen Long, long ago on the island of Hawai‘i in the district of Puna, there lived a beautiful girl. Lehua was her name. She had a face as round and glowing as the moon with eyes that glimmered…

  • Ke Ola Pono: Ka ‘Ili (the skin)

    By Leilehua Yuen Whatever we may believe to be the causes, climate change is here. When I was a girl, Mauna Kea was blanketed in snow from about Thanksgiving to Easter. On chilly days, girls would wear t-shirts or turtlenecks…

  • May Day is Lei Day in Hawai‘i

    By Leilehua Yuen May 1, celebrated around the world as a workers’ holiday, and in England and parts of Europe as a festival of spring, in the Hawaiian Islands has been known for some four generations as Lei Day. Don…

  • Ke Ola Pono: Ka Wai Ola

    By Leilehua Yuen Back in the 90s, when I was a cultural demonstrator at Pu‘uhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park, we sometimes used to enjoy mildly teasing visitors who asked us if there was a place they could find traditional…

  • Ho‘omana‘o Mau: A Lasting Remembrance Etched in Gold

    The Hawaiian Islands have neither native metals nor enameling technology. So how did enameled gold bangles become traditional ornamentation for Hawaiians? Ornaments of shell, bone, teeth, wood, feathers, and fiber have been found, which indicate that Hawaiian people have enjoyed…

  • Ke Ola Pono: Ka Hula

    By Leilehua Yuen Most of us could use a bit more movement in our lives. Being physically active has many health benefits. Studies have shown that the average American walks fewer than 6,000 steps each day. Yet by walking 10,000…