A park and condominium in Koloa, Kauai. A bay, restaurant and shopping mall in Hilo, Hawaii island. And in Honolulu — a school, street, beach and imposing building housing the U.S. District Court and offices of Hawaii’s U.S. senators and representatives, the Secret Service, Social Security Administration, CIA, FBI, IRS and other agencies and departments of the federal government.
All have a common namesake: Prince Jonah Kuhio Kalaniana‘ole, whose birthday, March 26, is celebrated as a state holiday. Toni Lee, chair of the Prince Kuhio Festival, would like more people to know why this alii (royal) is so honored.
IF YOU GO: PRINCE KUHIO FESTIVAL
Highlights of Oahu’s Prince Kuhio Festival. Unless otherwise noted, admission is free. For details, go to princekuhiofestival.com.
March 3
>> Kupuna Kukakuka: Kaiwakiloumoku Hall, Kamehameha Schools, 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
March 10
>> Eo Kalanianaʻole: Hyatt Regency Waikiki Beach Resort and Spa, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Hula, Hawaiian music and traditional arts and crafts demonstrations.
March 17
>> Pualeilani Festival: Royal Hawaiian Center, 1 to 5 p.m. Poi pounding, lei and kapa (tapa) making and games incorporating the Hawaiian language.
March 18
>> Loko Ea 8K Run and Walk: Haleiwa Beach Park, 6:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Preregistration is required; there are entry fees. lokoea.org/upcoming-events.
March 24
>> Lei draping: Prince Kuhio statue, Kuhio Beach, Waikiki, 7:30 a.m.
>> Parade: Saratoga Road to Kalakaua Avenue to Kapi‘olani Park, 9:30 a.m. to noon.
>> Hoolaulea/Hoikeike: Kapiolani Park, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Exhibits, food booths, live music and arts and crafts.
March 25
>> Alii Sunday services: Kawaiahao Church, 8:30 to 10 a.m.
>> Choral concert: Kawaiahao Church, 7 to 8:30 p.m.
March 26
>> Prince Kuhio’s birthday: Services, Mauna Ala (Royal Mausoleum), Nuuanu, 9 to 10:30 a.m. Presentation about Kuhio’s life and achievements, Hyatt Regency Waikiki Beach Resort and Spa, noon to 1 p.m.
March 28
>> Aloha Waikiki: Kuuipo Kumukahi and Halau Hawaii Aloha, Swim Poolside Bar and Lounge, Hyatt Regency Waikiki Beach Resort and Spa, 5:30 to 7 p.m. Features songs written for Prince Kuhio.
March 31
>> Holoku Ball: Pomaikai Ballroom, Dole Cannery, 5 to 9:30 p.m. $160 per person. hcchonolulu.org.
>> Waikiki by Moonlight: Prince Kuhio Hula Mound, Kuhio Beach, 7:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Kuhio was nicknamed the “Citizen Prince” for tirelessly championing causes to benefit his people. “After the overthrow of the monarchy in 1893, he saw that Hawaii was in disarray,” Lee said. “He wanted Hawaiians to preserve their culture and to get an education, so they could be qualified to govern Hawaii. That’s why he started the first Hawaiian civic club, the Hawaiian Civic Club of Honolulu, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year.”
Today, there are 63 Hawaiian civic clubs in Hawaii, Alaska, California, Colorado, Illinois, Nevada, Utah, Virginia, Tennessee, Texas and Washington. Advocating for the welfare of Hawaiians, they form the Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs , one of the major sponsors of the Prince Kuhio Festival.
According to Lee, the event began on Oahu about 20 years ago with small parades in neighborhoods with large Hawaiian populations such as Nanakuli, Waianae and Waimanalo. When the Prince Kuhio statue was erected in Waikiki in 2002, she realized it was important for the celebration to grow.
And it has, with events now also held on Maui, Kauai and Hawaii island.
New on Oahu this year is Kupuna Kukakuka, where elders will discuss the mission of Hawaiian civic clubs and club activities in an open “talk-story” format. Also making its debut will be the Loko Ea 8K Run and Walk, benefiting the Malama Loko Ea Foundation’s restoration of the 400-year-old Loko Ea Fishpond in Haleiwa. Waikiki by Moonlight, a free Hawaiian concert set for the Saturday or Sunday nearest each month’s full moon, is another new component.
On Oahu, the Prince Kuhio Festival has events throughout March. “Every event is designed to raise awareness about Prince Kuhio and what he did for Hawaii,” Lee said. “He was a scholar, an athlete, a visionary leader, an esteemed statesman. Most of all, he loved his people, but his legacy is for everyone, not just Hawaiians. Whether you’re a kamaaina (resident) or malihini (visitor), Hawaiian or of different descent, please come and join our tribute to this remarkable alii.”
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About Prince Jonah Kuhio Kalani‘anaole
A great-grandson of King Kaumuali‘i of Kauai, Prince Jonah Kuhio Kalani‘anaole was born in Koloa, Kauai, on March 26, 1871.
After his parents died (his father in 1878 and his mother in 1884), Kuhio was adopted by his aunt, Queen Kapi‘olani (the sister of his mother, Kekaulike-Kinoiki II), and her husband, King Kalakaua, who did not have children of their own. Kalakaua died in 1891, and his sister, Lili‘uokalani, became Hawaii’s last ruling monarch. She named Kuhio and his brother, David Kawananakoa, heirs presumptive to the throne, in case her niece Victoria Ka‘iulani, who was next in the line of succession, died. As it turned out, Ka‘iulani passed away in 1899, Kawananakoa in 1908 and Lili‘uokalani in 1917, so Kuhio would have been king had the monarchy not been overthrown on Jan. 17, 1893.
Instead, he served his people in Washington, D.C., as a delegate to Congress from March 4, 1903, until died of heart failure at his Waikiki home on Jan. 7, 1922, at the age of 50.
He is buried at Mauna Ala, the Royal Mausoleum, in Nuuanu.
Among his accomplishments: securing funds to develop Pearl Harbor in 1908; establishing Hawaii National Park in 1916, and introducing the first bill advocating Hawaii statehood in 1919. Hawaii’s territorial legislature declared March 26 as Kuhio Day in 1949.
Cheryl Chee Tsutsumi is a Honolulu-based freelance writer whose travel features for the Star-Advertiser have won several Society of American Travel Writers awards.
