Merrie Monarch Festival

Origins and history

The name comes from King David Kalākaua, who reigned over the Kingdom of Hawaii from 1874 until his death in 1891. He was called the Merrie Monarch for his cheerful, generous manner, and he backed the arts, hula among them, at a time when missionary teaching had long pushed Hawaiian practices aside. In 1963 Helene Hale, an officer of Hawaii County, proposed a festival to bring visitors to the island after the sugar industry collapsed. Working with the kumu hula George Naʻope and Gene Wilhelm, she staged the first one in 1964. Interest faded by 1968, when Dottie Thompson took over and put hula at the centre. A competition began in 1971 and opened to men's hālau in 1976.

The royal court

Each year a court is formed to stand in for Kalākaua, Queen Kapiʻolani and their household. Two coordinators, Uʻilani Peralto and Luana Kawelu, seek out a man and a woman for the roles of king and queen. Peralto has said that those chosen should show maturity, humility and pride in Hawaiian culture. Around twenty-two people make up the court, most of them friends and family of the pair. Its other members include chanters, bearers of the kahili or feathered standards, conch blowers known as pu kane, a kahu or caretaker, and ladies-in-waiting. All of them learn what their part involves and something of Kalākaua's aims. The court processes before and after every competition night and stays seated on stage while the dancing goes on.

Hula competition

Two group divisions run, one for men (kāne) and one for women (wahine). Each hālau offers a kahiko piece in the older style and an ʻauana piece in the modern style, with seven minutes allowed for a performance. Thursday, the opening night, belongs to the solo title Miss Aloha Hula, contested by one unmarried woman aged eighteen to twenty-five from each school. The title dates from 1971, first won by Aloha Dalire, then dancing as Aloha Wong. A kahiko set takes in an oli, or chant, given without a microphone, and contestants wear little makeup. Judges watch the entrance, the reading of the song, posture, precision, hand and body movement, grooming, the rightness of costume and adornments, and the exit. Group kahiko falls on Friday; group ʻauana and the awards follow on Saturday.

What it means

Four aims are set out by the organisers: to keep Hawaiian tradition alive; to build up knowledge of Hawaiian arts and crafts by way of performances, exhibitions, workshops and demonstrations; to reach people who might not otherwise take part; and to enrich the future lives of Hawaii's children. Many credit the festival with setting off a revival of Hawaiian culture. Through it, the organisers say, thousands of people in the islands and further away come to know Hawaii's history and culture, and the event has won international recognition for its cultural and historical weight.

Today and change

The festival has run every year except 2020, when it was called off over the coronavirus pandemic. The 2021 competition took place from 24 to 26 June with no audience present, and went out on KFVE a week later. Money raised pays for scholarships, workshops, seminars and symposiums as well as the running of the event; the organisation is a non-profit registered in Hawaii. Television arrived in 1981 with KITV, which showed edited highlights before going live and carried the festival for twenty-nine years. KFVE took over from 2010. All three competition nights now stream free on the Hawaii News Now website. Some winners are invited to Tokyo for Nā Hiwahiwa O Hawaiʻi, a sister festival that celebrates prize-winning Hawaiian performers.

How Merrie Monarch Festival is kept

Hālau hula from Hawaii, the mainland United States and other countries travel to Hilo. Easter Sunday opens the week with free events at various venues, an arts and crafts fair, and Hoʻike Night on the Wednesday. A parade fills Saturday morning. The competition then takes over, with solo women on Thursday, group kahiko on Friday, and group ʻauana plus the awards on Saturday. A royal court processes before and after each night's dancing. Judges score every part of every performance.

When and where

Merrie Monarch week begins on Easter Sunday and closes on the Saturday that follows, so the dates move with the Easter calendar each year. The hula competition fills the last three evenings: Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Only one year has been skipped, 2020, and the 2021 event was pushed to late June.

Hilo, on the island of Hawaii, is the festival's home. The competition nights are held in the stadium named after Edith Kanakaʻole, in Hoʻolulu Park, and free events take place at venues around the town. Hālau come from the mainland United States and from overseas, and Japan is among the strongest supporters of hula outside Hawaii.

What Merrie Monarch Festival means

For the hālau and their kumu hula, the week is a place to carry Hawaiian dance, chant and craft into the present. Many say it set off a revival of Hawaiian culture after decades when such practices were discouraged. The royal court is meant to stand for more than a re-telling of history: those chosen are said to embody the spirit that runs through the islands. Kalākaua's own backing for hula gives the gathering its purpose, and a title won there is widely held to be the highest honour in the art.

Merrie Monarch Festival dates: 2026, 2027, 2028

Questions people ask about Merrie Monarch Festival

See also

Saint David's DayThe national feast day of Wales, marked with parades, poetry contests and daffodilsDamba festivalA Ghanaian celebration of royal authority, ancestral memory, music and danceTalking stickA carved staff that shows who may speak at a Northwest Coast gatheringMaracatuA set of Afro-Brazilian performance traditions from Pernambuco and Ceará featuring drumming, dance, and royal pageantry.

Good reading and sources

• Merrie Monarch Festival on WikipediaEncyclopedia
• More photos on Wikimedia CommonsPhotos and video
• Wikidata recordOpen data

It may contain mistakes. Traditions differ from one family, village and community to the next, and the people who keep them know them best. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-10-05.