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Nā
Lei o Hawai`i
Pageantry of the Island Lei
Return to Main Lei Page
E Komo Mai!
Visit
our Lei Day Pages
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Hawai`i - Lei Lehua, red
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Maui - Lei Lokelani, pink
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Kaho`olawe - Lei Hinahina, silver
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Lana`i - Lei Kauna`oa, orange
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Moloka`i - Lei Kukui, green
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O`ahu - Lei Ilima, golden yellow
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Kaua`i - Lei Mokihana, purple
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Ni`ihau - Lei Pupu o Ni`ihau, white
Island Lei and Colors
Back in in the days when Hawai`i was a territory, the county leaders decided that in order to make pageantry (a big tourist draw) more colorful and appealing, the different islands should be distinguished by different lei and colors. This would make parades, festivals, and pageants more interesting and colorful, they felt. It seems to have worked. The most eagerly awaited sections of any Hawaiian parade are the pa`u princesses, each decked out in the colors and lei representing her island, astride her flower-caparisoned horse, with her matching outriders and pages. This PDF file of Honolulu Parks and Recreation has wonderful picture of the materials used in the different island lei.
Na Lei
o Hawai`i
copyright 2005, Leilehua Yuen
Hawai`i has the lei
lehua, shining red
Makes the lei wili for my head
Loved by Hi`iaka in the forest deep,
Ka ua kani lehua sings me to sleep
Maui has the loke
lani, sweet and pink
In a lei kui makes me think
How all the foreign blossoms growing here
Add their lovely fragrance to the air
Kaho`olawe has the
hinahina’s silver sheen
Another lei wili, the fairest seen
Growing on the beach in the rocks and sand
Teaches me to be firm when I stand
Lana`i has the
kauna`oa, soft orange strands
Hili them together with gentle hands
Growing in the heat of the brightest sun
Strength and softness, woven into one
Moloka`i has the lei
kukui’s soft green leaves
Hipu`u or haku, or wili it for me
Kukui is a shining little light
So I can see in darkest night
O`ahu has the lei
`ilima, golden ropes
Kui it together in royal hopes
Worn on the neck of Emma, kindly queen
Fragile as a butterfly, strong as a dream
Kaua`i mokihana and
purple, too
Use care with you kui, for this lei can burn you
Wili with the maile lau li`i for this special lei
Still enjoy the fragrance years away
Ni`ihau has the lei pūpū, so white and clean
Kui into shining strands from the sea
Honoring the ocean that surrounds our land
Grown in the sea and collected from the sand
Each of the lei is so
beautiful to see
Telling stories of Hawai`i
Woven with love into garlands fair
To show our aloha for people everywhere
Kaho`olawe's Lei Hinahina is a rare and beautiful sight. This one appears to be made in the wili style. Photo by Chris Madden of Big Island Weekly.
Other Lei Links
History of the Hawaiian Lei Forum