Above, Kili Redondo (left) and Leinani Lozi (right), oli (chant) at the opening of the 2023 Hilo Lei Day Festival at Kalākaua Park. Photo by Rita French
Lei, the lovely garlands of Hawaiʻi, are made of many different materials, from shells to ivory, to flowers, to feathers – so many things can be crafted into beautiful adornments.
These same techniques can be used to craft other types of adornments as well.
A garland is a lei.
Worn around the neck, open or closed, it is a lei ʻāʻī – a neck lei.
Photo by Rita French
Worn on the head, it is a lei poʻo – a head lei.
Photo by Rita French
Worn on a hat, it is a lei pāpale – a hat lei.
Photo by Rita French
A short garland worn on the wrist or ankle is a kūpeʻe.
Photo by Leilehua Yuen
Photo by Leilehua Yuen
A short garland or a floral arrangement worn in the hair or as a boutonnière is a wehi, wēwehi, or wehiwehi.
Recently we have been hearing that some people are claiming wēwehi are called “koko” or “coco” in Hawaiian. This is not true. “Koko” means “blood” in Hawaiian. “Kōkō” is a carrying net. “Kokō” is to crow or cackle. “Coco” is not a Hawaiian word.
There are many ways to craft a lei or a wēwehi. The two main ways of creating a lei are to kui lei (to sew or string a lei), and to haku lei (to braid, weave, or compile/fabricate a lei). This can be confusing because haku has several definitions, and is both a noun and a verb.