The Anahulu System

“The Anahulu System: Understanding the Hawaiian Lunar Calendar” is an event to increase understanding and use of the Hawaiian Lunar Calendar. Dr. Kalei Nuuhiwa will be sharing her 30+ years of experience and knowledge of Hawaiian practices of lunar calendars, time keeping, celestial cycles, and atmospheric phenomena.

The Hawaiian lunar calendar divides the month into three anahulu, each lasting 10 days, following the moon’s phases from emerging new moon, through waxing and full moon to waning and the completion of a full cycle.

These moon phases hold profound cultural significance, symbolizing the distinct cycles of the moon and its influence on Hawaiian beliefs and practices. This ancestral wisdom, passed down through generations, reflects a deep understanding of Earth’s natural rhythms and patterns.

Unique to the Hawaiian people, this knowledge shapes interactions with the environment, interpersonal relationships, and decision-making processes.

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Dr. Kalei Nuʻuhiwa is a Native Hawaiian artist, academic, cultural practitioner, photographer, composer, and mixed media artist from Maui. With more than 30 years of experience researching Hawaiian systems of knowledge, her work explores the relationships between people, place, celestial cycles, and the natural environment.

A recognized kilo practitioner and expert in Papahulilani—the study of celestial cycles and atmospheric phenomena—Dr. Nuʻuhiwa weaves art, photography, chanting, and Hawaiian epistemologies into her creative and cultural practice. She has been active in the Hawaiian language movement, the revitalization of Kahoʻolawe, wayfinding, Kaulana Mahina practices, and cultural research throughout Hawaiʻi. Through her work, she continues to advocate for the perpetuation and accessibility of ancestral knowledge for future generations.