“Lonoikamakahiki! Lonoikamakahiki!” reverberated along the Kona shoreline Thursday morning as dozens of children chanted for Lono, the Hawaiian god of fertility, agriculture and peace, to join them in makahiki festivities.
Traditionally celebrated from October to February, the makahiki season honors the god Lono, one of the four major Hawaiian gods, with the others being Ku, Kane and Kanaloa. During the fall and winter months, Hawaiians would cease war and work in order to participate in festivities like feasting, dancing and games, and make offerings (hookupu) to Lono.
About 150 fourth-grade students from Kealakehe Elementary School attended the children’s cultural festival on Thursday at Kaloko-Honokohau National Historical Park. The National Park Service has been putting on the makahiki event for about 20 years, however, Thursday was the first event held since the onset of COVID-19 in early 2020.
“It’s just a fun day outdoors — which the kids haven’t experienced in a long time,” said Jon Jokiel, supervisory park ranger at Kaloko-Hokokohau National Historical Park. “We want them to learn about Hawaiian culture and about some of the different things we do in the park. Maybe, it’s a career for them down here.”
For several hours, the youngsters got to take part in a variety of hands-on educational activities such as learning how to dry stack rocks to create walls, identifying archaeological items and how to protect native species, such as the Hawaiian monk seal. Fun was also on the menu with games like konane (checkers) and hooleipopo (ball in a cup).
“It’s amazing. Because it’s just so fun,” said Lyrix Lindo, who added Thursday was his first makahiki event. “I just like learning about where I live more so I can understand it more.”
Teacher Joy Hanato said the festival adds to the classroom experience.
“It has more of the hands-on and fun and interaction with each other that most teachers aren’t able to do for social studies because the focus is on language arts and math,” she said. “It also gets them exposed to the National Parks so they are more likely to go and visit and learn the cultural history of Hawaii.”
Pupils from Konawaena Elementary School and Hawaii Preparatory Academy are slated to take part in the educational fun today. A grant is covering the cost of busing all the students to the site.