Mele Kalikimaka me ka Hau'oli Makahiki Hou

• Mele Kalikimaka - Merry Christmas. The words "Mele Kalikimaka" are a phonetic translation. When the missionaries and other Westerners first brought the custom of Christmas to the islands the Hawaiians had difficulty pronouncing Merry Christmas and turned it into words that rolled more easily off their tongues.
  
  
• Hau'oli Makahiki Hou - Happy New Year. The western Christmas and New Year fell during this same time of the year that the Hawaiians traditionally honored the earth for giving them plenty to eat. This period of resting and feasting was called Makahiki (mah-kah-HEE- kee). It lasted for 4 months, and no wars or conflicts were allowed during this time. Because makahiki also means "year", the Hawaiian phrase for "Happy New Year" became "Hau'oli (happy) Makahiki (year) Hou (new)"(how-OH-lee mah-kah-hee-kee ho).
• Mele Kalikimaka me ka Hau'oli Makahiki Hou - Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
• From Go Hawaii

How to Celebrate Christmas in Hawaii

Things You'll Need:

• Kalua Pigs
• Steel Guitars
• Hawaiian Cookbooks
• Leis
• Christmas Tapes Or CDs

1. Step1

   Purchase gifts for just about everyone you know. Hawaiians seem to be more generous than most people at Christmastime. It's a tradition to make sure that everyone is included.

2. Step2

   Attend church on Christmas morning, if that's an important part of your religious tradition.

3. Step3

   Plan a luau, which is an outdoor meal that consists of a kalua pig roasted in an "imu," or underground oven.

4. Step4

   Make Christmas leis for family and friends to wear.

5. Step5

   Enjoy the sounds of the Christmas bells, which are played on a steel guitar.

6. Step6

   Expect Menehune Santa to arrive with presents in his Christmas tree boat, or red canoe, dressed for the weather in shorts and Hawaiian shirt. His elves are said to paddle the boat to shore.

7. Step7

   Bake traditional Christmas treats, such as sweet potato cheesecake with "haupia," or coconut, frosting.

8. Step8

   Listen to Hawaiian Christmas songs like "Po La'i E" or "Silent Night."

   
   

   From how

   
   

   We'll be going Hawaiian style next year!! For now, we are riding the cold storm out!