Likelike was a princess of the Hawaiian Kingdom and member of the reigning House of Kalākaua. She was born in Honolulu, on the island of Oʻahu. Likelike's parents were Analea Keohokālole and Caesar Kapaʻakea, and the family were members of the aliʻi class of the Hawaiian nobility. Before the age of six, she was raised on the island of Hawaii for her health. Likelike later returned to Honolulu, where she was educated by Roman Catholic and Congregationalist teachers in the city's girls' schools.

Analea Keohokālole was a Hawaiian chiefess and matriarch of the House of Kalākaua that ruled the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi from 1874 to 1893. Her Hawaiian name Keohokālole means "the straight hair of her own father's tresses" and was given to her at birth by Queen Kaʻahumanu.