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Traditionally made of feathers from now mostly extinct or endangered native birds, the art continues using feathers from common birds.

There’s no more enduring symbol of Hawai’i than the lei (garland). In the past, permanent lei were made from shells, seeds, bone, and feathers, and temporary lei from vines and leaves. Today, colorful and fragrant flowers like plumeria and tuberose are most associated with this craft.

These range from puka-shell lei , wildly popular in the 1970s, to museum-quality Ni’ihau-shell lei , worth many thousands of dollars.

Transplanted mainland U.S. businessman and leader of the “Bayonet Revolution” of 1887, which ended the monarchy.

April 19, 1820 is a momentous (some would say notorious) date, when the first American missionaries arrived in Hawai’i. The first group was made up of 23 New England Congregationalists, and they landed at Kailua on Hawai’i. Over the next 20 years, many more Christian missionaries would follow, taking up residence on all the major islands.

The navigator for the Polynesian Voyaging Society since the 1970s, he has revived traditional voyaging arts.

Famous as much for its hair-flying winds as for its blood-soaked history, this vantage point is where Kamehameha the Conqueror did final battle with O’ahu warriors (see King Kamehameha I Unites the Islands). The latter either jumped to their deaths or fought until they were pushed over the cliff edge rather than give in. This atmospheric site is sometimes cold and misty, but always spectacular and spooky.

The gravestones of this hillside resting place founded in 1844 read like a who’s who of Hawai’i history, from the humble to the high-class. Nanette Napoleon, “the cemetery lady,” has written a guidebook and leads periodic tours – both are worth seeking out.

It was a quiet, overcast Sunday morning when Japanese warplanes attacked the U.S. fleet anchored at Pearl Harbor. This shocking and stunning attack on December 7, 1941 marked the official entry of the United States into World War II.