Maddy Lam composed this song for Kahauanu Lake, as a gift to Maiki Aiu. This was first danced by April Peeples Chock and presented as a hoʻokupu to Maiki. She loved the mele and it became the signature song of her halau. This mele compares a sweetheart to the beautiful ʻāhihi blossom. The ʻāhihi, a low spreading shrub-like bush with a twisted trunk (Metrosiderous) is a form of Lehua. Lanihuli is the peak west of the Nuʻuanu Pali gap where the ʻāhihi grows profusely. Delightful to the ears and ea

The 2021 Queen Liliʻuokalani Keiki Hula Celebration is an inspiring, four-part film that immerses viewers in the hula, music, language, history, and culture of Hawaiʻi, as taught to our keiki (children) whose dances honor their beloved queen. This intimate peek behind the curtain reveals what takes place "before the dance," featuring distinct voices of more than 30 kumu hula (teachers) representing more than 20 hālau (schools) and hundreds of haumāna (students). Filmed against a backdrop of swee

For centuries, the hālau hula (traditional hula school) has been one of several spaces in Hawaiian society where traditional knowledge is transferred from one generation to the next. 🌱 Hālau I Ka Leo Ola O Nā Mamo (Hula School of the Living Language of the Descendants) came to Washington, D.C. this summer for the 2025 Smithsonian Folklife Festival to highlight the strength of Ke Aukahi Hoʻōla ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi, the Hawaiian Language Revitalization Movement. At the Festival, which celebrated “Youth

Hula is more than movement, it is a language 🌺 Before a written Hawaiian alphabet existed, ʻike (knowledge), history, genealogy, and stories were passed down through hula. Hula is also deeply tied to lineage. Depending on genealogy and training, you can often recognize a hula dancer by their footwork alone. Each hālau and kumu passes down distinct style, rhythm, and emphasis. When you practice hula, you’re not just dancing you’re learning to tell a story the way Hawaiians have for generations.