Why are people saying “Mele Kalikimaka” these days?
Mele Kaliki Maka is a Christmas Song that is sung from Hawaii. It gives the message as the warm greeting of the New Year. In Hawaii, Merry Christmas has been changed into the word Mele Kalikimaka as Hawaiian does not have English Alphabets R and S and thus the song has been changed to Mele Kalikimaka. The alphabets L is used for R and K for S and so this word is a transliteration of Merry Christmas and not the translation. The people of Hawaii did not celebrate Christmas before the arrival of Captain Cook in Hawaii in the year 1977. The missionaries introduced it to the people in 1820 from New England. This song was written by Robert Alex Anderson in 1949. The earliest recordings of this song was made in 1950 by Bing Crosby and The Andrews Sisters on Decca 27228 (78 rpm) / 9-27228 (45 rpm). A number of artists have covered this song. Sources: http://www.merinews.com/articl
From Examiner: “Mele Kaliki Maka means Merry Christmas in Hawaiian, and it is one of the most famous Christmas songs that Bing Crosby sang.” The article also talks about Obama, who was born in Hawaii. Sources: http://www.examiner.
