King Kamehameha I Day in Hawaii

Kamehameha Day on June 11 is a public holiday of the state of Hawaii in the United States. It honors Kamehameha the Great, the monarch who first established the unified Kingdom of Hawai’i — comprising the Hawaiian Islands of Ni’ihau, Kaua’i, O’ahu, Moloka’i, Lana’i, Kaho’olawe, Maui, and Hawai’i. In 1883 a statue of King Kamehameha I was dedicated in Honolulu by King David Kalakaua (this was a duplicate, because the original statue was temporarily lost at sea). There is another duplicate of this statue in Emancipation Hall at the Capitol Visitor Center in Washington, D.C.

The celebration includes a traditional Pa‘u Parade and a Ho‘olaule‘a. The celebration is organized by the Kohala Hawaiian Civic Club.

The most important ritual dates back to 1901 after the Territory of Hawai’i was established. It is the evening draping ceremony in which the Kamehameha Statue in front of Ali’iolani Hale and ’Iolani Palace on King Street in downtown Honolulu is draped in long strands of lei. The same is done at the Kamehameha Statue on the former monarch’s home island, the Big Island of Hawai’i. Outside of the state, a similar draping ceremony is held at the United States Capitol where the Kamehameha Statue there is also draped in lei in the company of federal officials.

Source: wikipedia.org | hawaii.edu