Introduction
Moana is one of the most popular modern Disney princesses, displaying bravery, compassion, and selflessness in her quest to save her people. She is a character from a fictional island, but has obvious ties with the Polynesian islands, and the cultures of Tahiti, Hawaii, Samoa, and more.
You might be astonished to find that most sources place Moana at 7 foot 6 inches (2.29 meters). That would mean she is almost two feet taller than the average height of most people today. However, there are a lot of other estimates, with some people placing her at around 5 foot 2 (1.58 meters) and others at around 6 foot 5 inches (1.96 meters).
As you can see, there’s an enormous amount of variation in how tall people think this character is intended to be, so let’s figure out a bit more about this, and where the estimates are coming from!
How Tall Is Moana?
If you simply Google how tall Moana is, you’ll see her listed at an astonishing 7 foot 6 inches tall, which is an incredible height. When you look at her compared with other characters in the movie, such as her father and Maui, this would probably place them at around 8 feet (2.44 meters) tall.
You might be wondering where on earth this extraordinary estimate has come from. It seems to have first been put about by a site called ALevelMaths, which created a chart with calculated Disney character heights. Moana was placed at the top, at 7 foot 6 inches, alongside James P. Sullivan from Monsters Inc.
However, the only explanation for this is that they looked at the size of her pet rooster, Heihei. She is about 5 times taller than Heihei, which would make her about 7 foot 6. She has also been compared with the mini pig, which brings a similar answer.
This is a fairly inaccurate way of measuring, of course. It’s perfectly possible that Heihei is a particularly small chicken. If we compare Moana with other things in her movie, she does not appear especially tall. For example, a coconut looks about the same size in her hands as it does in a real person’s hands.
If she was over 7 feet tall, it seems likely that other things in the movie would appear smaller, although if her whole tribe is very tall, their boats, houses, etc., would probably remain in scale with her.
It’s also worth noting that Moana doesn’t seem tall compared with the other characters. Both her father and Maui are considerably taller than she is. Maui is a demigod, so perhaps is particularly tall, but Moana’s mother is also taller than her, as is her grandmother. That suggests Moana is not particularly tall for her tribe (though perhaps she hasn’t finished growing yet).
Some sources state that Disney has officially listed Moana as 5 foot 2 inches (1.57 meters), but others claim that the official dolls show Moana as being taller than Elsa and Anna. Given that Moana is only a teenager, while Elsa and Anna are adults, this is a little surprising – especially if she’s only 5 foot 2.
It’s very challenging, therefore, to pin down an exact height for Moana. She might be as short as 5 foot 2 or as tall as 7 foot 6. It’s more likely that she’s somewhere in the middle, although it’s impossible to know for sure.
How Old Is Moana?
Moana’s age is far easier to pinpoint; she is 16 at the time she begins her quest. Although that’s quite young for a Disney princess, it’s clear that this is a coming-of-age story, where Moana discovers who she is, what she means to her tribe and to herself, and how she relates to the world.
Her voice actress, Auli’i Cravalho, was 14 at the time of filming, but turned 16 the day before the film was released. This means she sounds around the right age for Moana, and she did a beautiful job of bringing the character to life.
It’s possible that Disney chose to make this character younger than many other Disney princesses because they didn’t include any romance in the story of Moana. She is going on a quest to save the world and find her place in it, rather than looking for love or marriage.
This makes it more acceptable to have her as a teenager, rather than an adult. It also makes the quest work better; she is coming of age and trying to figure out where she belongs.
It’s not clear how old Moana is in the opening scene, when she’s first seen playing with the sea. She is probably between 2 and 4 years old, judging by her appearance and behavior, but there’s no way to know for sure.
How Much Does Moana Weigh?
There are no official sources to state how much Moana weighs, and because her height estimates range so wildly, it’s impossible to pin down an accurate figure. If she was really 7 foot 6 inches, she would probably be well over 200 lb (91 kg).
However, if she was 5 foot 2 inches, she would probably only weigh between 136 and 163 lb (62 and 74 kg). It’s therefore very difficult to guess what her weight is supposed to be.
What is notable about Moana is that she has a strong physique. Unlike many Disney princesses, she has a somewhat muscular build. She is still slim, but is clearly powerful enough to steer a boat, use the oars, climb, jump, and run.
Throughout the movie, we see her performing some pretty athletic feats, and Disney has been commended for showing a female character in this light. It makes sense for somebody from a hunter-gatherer community like Moana’s to be physically fit.
Conclusion
As you can see, the estimates of Moana’s height vary significantly. She is probably intended to be quite a tall character, although the 7 foot 6 inch estimate seems overblown and unlikely. She is probably closer to 5 and a half or 6 feet, but there simply isn’t any way to know for sure.
