"E Ola Ke Aliʻi Ke Akua" ('God Save the King') was one of the four national anthems of the Hawaiian Kingdom. It was composed in 1860 by then 25-year-old Prince William Charles Lunalilo, who later became King Lunalilo. Prior to 1860, Hawai‘i lacked its own national anthem and had used the British royal anthem "God Save the King". A contest was sponsored in 1860 by Kamehameha IV, who wanted a song with Hawaiian lyrics set to the tune of the British anthem. The winning entry was written by Lunalilo and was reputed to have been written in 20 minutes. Lunalilo was awarded 10 dollars which he later donated to the Queen's Hospital. His composition became Hawaiʻi's first national anthem.[1][2][3] It remained Hawaiʻi's national anthem for 6 years until 1866, when it was replaced by Queen Liliʻuokalani's composition "He Mele Lāhui Hawaiʻi".
| English: God Save the King | |
|---|---|
 | |
National anthem of the Kingdom of Hawaii | |
| Lyrics | Lunalilo |
| Music | Same as God Save the King |
| Adopted | 1860 |
| Relinquished | 1866 |
| Audio sample | |
"E Ola Ke Aliʻi Ke Akua"
editKe Akua Mana Mau |
Eternal, mighty God |
References
edit- ^ "William Charles Lunalilo". HawaiiHistory.org. Archived from the original on 2011-07-26. Retrieved 2010-03-07.
- ^ "Hawaiian National Hymn". The Friend. March 2, 1874. Retrieved June 20, 2013.
- ^ Smith, Emmerson C. (1956). "The History of Musical Development in Hawaii". Sixty-Fourth Annual Report of the Hawaiian Historical Society for the Year 1955. Honolulu: Hawaiian Historical Society: 5–13. hdl:10524/59.
- ^ English version by Makua Laiana. "E Ola Ke Ali'i Ke Akua". Hawaiian Music and Hula Archives. Kaiulani Kanoa-Martin. Archived from the original on 2010-06-20. Retrieved 2009-10-06.