We know the tradition best from Kamehameha Day (which began in 1872) and from Aloha Week celebrations. The individual islands are limned by hula dancers or pa'u riders, usually just the primary islands -- Hawaii is red and represented by the lehua blossom, Maui is pink and the roselani, Kahoolawe is gray and the hinahina, Lanai is orange and the kauna'oa, Molokai is green and the kukui, Oahu is yellow and the ilima, Kauai is violet and the mokihana, Niihau is white and the pupu, and Molokini is blue and the limu kala.

But this "tradition" is less than a century old. It grew out of a melding of Hawaiian territorial concerns and the influence of parades, pageants and "tableaux," European customs in which individuals represent larger groups in public gatherings. Tableaux, in which real people pose a still life, were particularly popular. We see this today in yuletide "manger" scenes.

According to an article by Amy K. Stillman in The Hawaiian Journal of History, the earliest known link of flowers to islands is the song "Na Lei O Hawaii," composed by Rev. Samuel Kapu in 1900. By 1909 it was being used as a tableaux background by the Kaahumanu Society. A more famous song of the same name was composed by Charles E. King in 1914.

The idea caught fire and soon "princesses" representing islands became an instant tradition.

In 1923, the Outdoor Circle demanded that the hibiscus become the flower representing all the islands, and Joint Resolution No. 1, passed by the Territorial Legislature that year, also listed individual island flowers. Polynesian varieties of hibiscus have since been interbred with thousands of foreign species, creating a metaphoric symbol for Hawaii that also looks good on a pretty girl's ear.

KONG 570-AM / 93.5 FM: Adult contemporary rock with some Hawaiian music
KSSK 590-AM / 92.3-FM: Adult contemporary music
KHNR 650-AM: All news
KQMQ 93.1-FM: Contemporary hit radio
KQMQ 690-AM: Radio Disney
KGU 760-AM: Sports radio
KHVH 830-AM: News, talk, traffic, weather
KAIM 870-AM / 95.5-FM: Christian music and teaching
KJPN 940-AM: Japanese-language news, adult contemporary music and talk shows
KIKI 990-AM / 93.9-FM: Contemporary country AM; contemporary hits FM
KLHT 1040-AM: Christian radio
KWAI 1080-AM: Talk radio
KZOO 1210-AM: Japanese-language, broadcasts from Japan
KNDI 1270-AM: Live news and programs from the Philippines in 10 languages
KIFO 1380-AM: News, public affairs
KCCN 1420-AM / 100.3-FM: All talk / UH sports AM; contemporary island hits, FM
KUMU 1500-AM / 94.7-FM: Adult standards, AM; light favorites, FM
KHPR 88.1-FM: Classical, news, public affairs
KIPO 89.3-FM: Jazz, classical, news
KTUH 90.3-FM: Jazz, blues, Hawaiian, rock, country and alternative
KKUA 90.7-FM: Classical, news and public affairs
KKCR 90.9 / 91.9-FM: Hawaiian music, midnight-3 p.m.; and rock, reggae, classical and new age
KRTR 96.3-FM: Adult contemporary music and news
KPOI 97.5-FM: Modern rock
KKLV 98.5-FM: Contemporary Hawaiian
KORL 99.5-FM: Adult contemporary
STAR 101.9-FM: Modern hits
KKHN 102.7-FM: Country
KXME 104.3-FM: Top 40
KINE 105.1-FM: Hawaiian
KGMZ 107.9-FM: Oldies

Click for online
calendars and events.