Hawai'i Flag on Our Flagpole

Hawai’i -The Aloha State

Flag of Hawaii 1845-present
Flag of Hawaii 1845-present

The canton of the flag of Hawai’i contains the Union Flag of the United Kingdom, prominent over the top quarter closest to the flag mast.  The field of the flag is composed of eight horizontal stripes, symbolizing the eight major islands (Hawaiʻi, Maui, Kahoʻolawe, Lānaʻi, Molokaʻi, Oʻahu, Kauaʻi, and Niʻihau).  Other versions of the flag have only seven stripes, probably representing the islands with the exception of Kahoʻolawe or Niʻihau.  The color of the stripes, from the top down, follows the sequence: white, red, blue, white, red, blue, white, red.  The colors were standardized in 1843, although other combinations have been seen and are occasionally still used.

There are various accounts of the earliest history of the flag of Hawai’i.  One relates how King Kamehameha I flew a British flag, probably a Red Ensign, given to him by British explorer Captain George Vancouver as a token of friendship with King George III.

Red Ensign Flag of Great Britain 1793-1794
Red Ensign Flag of Great Britain 1793-1794

Subsequent visitors reported seeing the flag flying from places of honor, as it was then considered an official Hawai’ian flag.  As the union jack added diagonal red cross of St Patrick in 1801, so did the flag of Hawai’i.  An adviser to Kamehameha noted that the Union Flag could draw Hawai’i into international conflict, as his kingdom could be seen as an ally of the United Kingdom, and he subsequently lowered the Union Flag over his home at Kamakahonu.

Flag of Great Britain 1794-1816
Flag of Great Britain 1794-1816

While disputed as historically accurate, one account stated that in order to placate U.S. interests during the War of 1812, a flag of the U.S. was raised over Kamehameha’s home, only to be removed when British officers in the court of Kamehameha vehemently objected to it.  This explains why the resulting flag of Hawai’i was a deliberate hybrid of the two nations’ flags.

In 1816, Kamehameha commissioned his own flag to avoid this conflict, which has evolved into the current flag.  It was probably designed by one of the commanders of the Royal Hawai’ian Navy, former officers of the British Royal Navy, who advised Kamehameha, based on a form of the British naval flag.  There is debate as to the actual designer: some credit Alexander Adams, others George Charles Beckley.  It was very similar to the flag of the British East India Company in use about this time which had only red and white stripes.  Captain Adams used this flag for the first time on a Hawai’ian trade mission to China in 1817.

British East India Company Flag
British East India Company Flag

The original flag was designed to feature stripes alternating in the order red-white-blue, also attributed to various historical flags of the United Kingdom.

Early Version of Current Flag 1816-1845
Early Version of Current Flag 1816-1845

The flag used at the first official flying of the flag of Hawai’i mistakenly placed the stripes in the order white-red-blue, although it seems explorers to the island disagree about the exact order of colors and the number of stripes up to the late 1840s.  There may have been possibly different versions of the flag with different numbers of stripes and colors.  The number of stripes also changed: originally, the flag was designed with either seven or nine horizontal stripes, and in 1845 it was officially changed to eight stripes.  The latter arrangement was adopted and is used today.

State Nickname:

Hawai’i’s state nickname is “The Aloha State”. Hawai’i is also called “Paradise of the Pacific.”

Scroll to Top