Ka Makou Kōnane | Oʻahu Qualifying Tournament

Saturday, February 7, 2026
11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
Atherton Hālau
FREE with Museum Admission

In partnership with Pā Kōnane, Ka Hale Hoaka, Kaʻūpūlehu Cultural Center, and HawaiianCheckers.com, Bishop Museum invites you to participate in the inaugural Ka Makou Kōnane Invitational Tournament – a first of its kind in modern Hawaiʻi – to identify the definitive kōnane champion across ko Hawaiʻi Pae ʻĀina.

Challenge fellow Oʻahu kōnane enthusiasts at this qualifying tournament on Saturday, February 7, 2026. Two top Oʻahu qualifiers will advance to the Ka Makou Kōnane championship tournament, joining contenders from qualifying events on Kauaʻi, Molokaʻi, and Hawaiʻi. This elite competition will be the centerpiece of our Museum After Hours event on Friday, February 13th, 2026.

Please click here to register to compete in the Oʻahu qualifying tournament, or to get more information.

Ka Makou Kōnane qualifying tournaments are open enrollment and open to everyone. Museum guests are welcome to spectate and learn more about kōnane strategy with Museum admission.

Ka Makou Kōnane is a significant leap in the cultural revival and perpetuation of our ancestral pastime. The final round of Ka Makou Kōnane championship tournament will be played on a papamū kupuna in the care of the Bishop Museum Ethnology Collection. This board has not felt stones leap across its surface in well over 100 years. E ola kōnane!

The name Ka Makou Kōnane, much like the game itself, contains many layers of kaona, or hidden meanings. On its surface, Ka Makou Kōnane refers to a traditional three-stringed makou kukui torch shining brightly and burning throughout the night. Indeed, you can imagine these makou torches lighting the boards of many high-stakes kōnane games that extended well into the night in ancient Hawaiʻi. In Hawaiian culture, the kukui torch is a symbol of light, knowledge, and holders of ʻike — makou is also a poetic term for a trusted and esteemed advisor who served an aliʻi across three generations and carried important histories and stories with them.

Kōnane is a word with many meanings. It refers to our heritage game, but also of brightness and shining light, like the moon. It is said that as the moonlight passes through the leaves in the forest the resulting pattern on the forest floor is that of a kōnane board.

The name “Ka Makou Kōnane” ties these concepts of light, wisdom, knowledge, and our heritage game together with symbols known to our kupuna. Like the makou torch, we hope for a bright future of kōnane.