lūʻau

In Hawaii, the word lūʻau is universally used by locals, Hawaiians, and visitors alike to describe a large feast or celebratory gathering, such as a baby's first birthday or a high school graduation. While tourists often associate the word with commercialized hotel shows featuring fire dancers and buffet lines, for locals, a true lūʻau is a deeply personal, family-run event that involves days of preparation, including digging an imu (underground oven) and preparing massive amounts of traditional food.

Historically, the word lūʻau actually refers to the young, heart-shaped leaves of the kalo (taro) plant. Because a dish made from these leaves, coconut milk, and chicken or heʻe (octopus) was always served at these large feasts, people eventually began referring to the entire party by the name of the dish. Prior to this shift in the mid-19th century, these feasts were called ʻahaʻaina (gathering for a meal) or pāʻina (a smaller party). Today, using the word is appropriate in almost any context, though locals will quickly distinguish between a "tourist lūʻau" and a "family lūʻau."

The family group chat, "Maui Boyz + Aunty Nena," was going absolutely nuclear. Keoni had just sent a picture of a pre-made, plastic-wrapped kalua pork tub from the Kahului Costco with the caption: "Found the main dish for baby's first birthday lūʻau, we good to go."

Instantly, three people started typing. Aunty Nena fired off a string of angry red face emojis, followed by, "Boy if you serve that at a real lūʻau I am telling everyone you are adopted." Cousin Micah chimed in from his job site in Kihei, "Brah, you cannot call it one lūʻau if you buying the pig from aisle four. That's just one barbecue with expensive mayonnaise."

Keoni, sitting in his Tacoma in the Costco parking lot, watched the notifications roll in. "I was joking!" he typed back, but it was too late. His phone buzzed again. It was his dad. "Get out of Costco. We digging the imu at the Makawao house on Thursday. Bring your own shovel."