Mele Kaliki Maka

Mele Kaliki Maka:Mele Kalikimaka is a song of the Christmas that is sung from Hawaii and gives the message as the warm greeting of the New Year. It is the word that has been changed into the pronunciation of the Hawaii. In Hawaii Mery Christmas has changed into the word Mele Kalikimaka. Since Hawaiian does not has all the English words especially R and S due to which Merry Christmas has changed into the word Mele Kalikimaka.

The substitutes are L’s for R’s and K’s for S’s. So this word is the Transliteration of Mery Christmas not the translation. Before the arrival of captain Cook in Hawaii in 1977, Hawaiian people did not celebrate Christmas. The missionaries introduced it to the people of Hawaii in 1820 from New England.

In order to understand their language missionaries reduced the Hawaiian language. There were many words, which have no Hawaiian language equivalent words were translated.
Like Christmas tree into La’au Kalikimaka, Angel into Anela, Peace into Malu, Snowball into Popohau, Santa Claus into Kanakaloka. Other examples are Gift – Makana, Candy – Kanake, Love – Aloha, Elf – Menehune, Hau’oli Makahiki Hou – Happy New Year
Mahalo Nui Loa – Thank you very much, Mele Kalikimaka – Merry Christmas,
Mele Kalikimaka me ka Hau’oli Makahiki Hou – Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

In 1949 Robert Alex Anderson wrote this song. In 1950 Bing Crosby and The Andrews Sisters made the earliest recordings of this song on Decca 27228 (78 rpm) / 9-27228 (45 rpm). Several artists have covered this song. Some of the lines of this song are as under:

“Mele Kalikimaka is the thing to say
On a bright Hawaiian Christmas Day
That’s the island greeting that we send to you
From the land where palm trees sway
Here we know that Christmas will be green and bright
The sun to shine by day and all the stars at night
Mele Kalikimaka is Hawaii’s way
To say “Merry Christmas to you.”