HONOLULU (KHON2) — “May Day is Lei Day in Hawaii” is a popular saying here. It highlights the coincidence of May Day and Lei Day in Hawaii being on the same day.
While May Day is celebrated internationally on May 1, Lei Day is a specific celebration in Hawaii dedicated to the art of making and wearing lei.
Lei Day in Hawaii is a special occasion to honor the lei, which is a symbol of aloha (love), hospitality and friendship. The tradition of Lei Day in Hawaii dates back to 1928 when it was first proposed by poet and artist Don Blanding.
On Lei Day, festivities typically include lei-making contests, cultural performances, music, dance and various events celebrating Native Hawaiian heritage.
Schools, communities and organizations across the Hawaii Islands participate in parades and activities to showcase the beauty and significance of lei and Native Hawaiian culture.
The combination of May Day and Lei Day in Hawaii creates a unique and joyous celebration that emphasizes the spirit of aloha and the importance of community and cultural traditions in the islands.
For Kumu Brad Lum, giving a lei is the best way to spread aloha.
“It’s a very special day, May 1st,” said Kumu Lum as he set up his lei making station. “It’s always been a day full of music and dancing and lei making. And today, we’re gonna be making different types of lei.”
Kumu Lum explained that there are many type of different lei that exist today and that there are a wide variety of materials used with techniques that bring them together.
“We have a vast world of lei that still retain the warmth and meaning that have kept this beloved tradition alive through the centuries,” explained Kumu Lum. “The lei traditionally made in Hawaii are made from local foliage and seeds and flowers adorning them with bark and vines used to create the strands that hold the lays together.”
According to Kumu Lum, some of the common flowers used in traditional lei include the orchid, the lucky ti leaf, the carnation and the striking plumeria.
As a special treat for our readers and viewers, Kumu Lum will teach you how to make lei poʻo which he calls a wili lei, in the video above.
Kumu Lum wants you to know that calling a lei a haku is incorrect. A lei contains the art of haku but is not a haku. Haku means to braid. It is an act rather than an item.