For over fifty years, Hawaii has been a part of the United States. It is known as a tropical vacation spot and popular tourist destination. What goes unnoticed by most travelers and vacationers, is the rich history that goes along with these beautiful islands. Hawaii has an extensive and intricate culture, originating back to Polynesia. It has its own unique history of religion, medicine, music and dance. The influence of Hawaiian culture can be seen all over the world, from surfing to luau parties. What’s most remarkable about the ancient Hawaiians is their ability to thrive in isolation.
Their skill at using the resources provided to them by the island is extremely impressive. The Hawaiian island were first inhabited by people who migrated from Polynesia – mainly Tahiti, Samoa, Fiji, Tonga and the Marquesas who arrived around AD 860. These voyages brought their agriculture, including domesticated chickens, pigs and dogs. Hawaiian land was divided into territories called ahupua’a. Each territory has a different set of resources that the locals utilized. Few inhabitants lived in the ahupua’a’s, because they lived closer to the coast.
The social structure was omposed of chiefs and their families, priests (Kahunas), craft specialists, and commoners, in that order. Early Hawaiian civilization is set apart for a few reasons: one being that chiefs could either be male or female. Chiefs were considered war leaders and ceremonial ritual leaders, which included human sacrifice, which was introduced by the Kahiki in approximately AD 1350. Unlike other early civilizations, Hawaii did not trade long distances, due to their location in the Pacific Ocean. Later, in the late 1800s and early 1900s there is an influx of Chinese nd Portuguese migrators.
Traditional Hawaiian religion was pantheistic. Every object of nature or natural phenomenon was a deity. One example of this is Pele, a Hawaiian goddess associated with fire, who, according to the religion, lives in the Kilauea volcano. Ancient Hawaiians made (and still make today) sacrifices to her, such as leis, so that should she be angered, the volcanic eruption would leave them and their property unharmed. Believers tried to remain in favor with their gods, and believed that certain actions would please or anger the gods of the islands.
They were firm believers in kapu, or taboo, and the warning that something may be kapu is often still used around the islands to warn of angering the gods by trespassing on sacred ground. Kapu even extended to food – early Hawaiian women were not allowed to eat bananas, coconuts, pork and certain kinds of seafood due to them being considered taboo (Kirch, P. & O’Day, S. 2003, p. 486). Hawaiians worshipped sometimes in nature, but mostly in temples known as heiau. These temples could be oval but most were rectangular, with walls constructed from stone.
A strong characteristic was the duality of men and women, therefore there were undertones of sexuality. Priests of this religion were known as Kahuna Pule or Kahuna Laau Kahea. They were known as the spiritual leaders of their communities and were considered experts in prayer. Prayer was the cornerstone of ancient Hawaiian medicine, as the belief was that sickness was an energy disruption. The first order of a Kahuna when someone fell ill was a prayer of forgiveness, as they believed the illness could have been brought on by sinning. A commonly used phrase was “Hlokahi a la’au e Mini”, which means “The first medicine is forgiveness”.
They also believed that an sickness or energy imbalance could have been magically induced. Kahuna’s were well versed in the use of medicinal herbs, and often practiced chanting. Such a religion is considered ethnic, and was passed on through generations of native Hawaiians. It was not known to be a religion of conversion, such as Christianity or Mormonism (Heatwole, 1988). A piece of Hawaiian culture most are familiar with is the hula. The purpose of the hula dance is to tell some kind of story. This tory can tell of romance, detail lineages, express emotion, or be a form of worship.
Ancient hula was known was hula kahiko – it was used to honor the gods and those in high ranking positions, such as the chiefs and their wives. Before the ukulele was introduced to the islands by the Portuguese, drums were a prominent musical instrument in the islands, along with flutes and other wind instruments (Galla, Galla, Keawe & Kimura, 2015). Hawaiian songs, or mele, frequently portrayed nature, with common subjects being water and the spirit of aloha. To the Hawaiians, the spirit of aloha meant more than just a reeting, it was a way of life. It stood for inclusion and harmony in all aspects of one’s life.
Everyone on the island had a job or responsibility that contributed to the harmony of the island as a whole. It meant (and still means) live of place, natural beauty, and people. Water was an important subject as well, because of its large role in the daily life of Hawaiians. They believed that without water, there was no life. This also ties into the prominent role of surfing in their culture. Stand up surfing became popular in Polynesia and the surrounding islands in AD 000, and almost every Hawaiian from the lowest commoner to the chief surfed (Bogrand, E. 2011).
Hawaiians were extremely skilled in the making of kappa, bark that was soaked and then beaten to be used as material. While it was mostly made by women, only men were allowed to make the loincloths. Kapa fabric was used to make clothing for both men and women, and beautifully dyed and scented with floral or natural scents, to the preference of the maker. Kapa was also used to make bedding as wellI. The texture of kapa also varied upon designer, and could be inscribed with geometric shapes nd patterns.
Eventually other Polynesian civilizations also took up this practice, especially after the arrival of Captain Cook, but their skill level never quite reached that of the Hawaiians (Francis, B. 1997, pg. 52). Another remarkable ability of the ancient Hawaiians is their ability to navigate without instruments, using only the stars. They also were skilled boat makers, sometimes making boats with outriggers to hold more supplies or the like. While Hawaii stood apart in that women shared equality with men, they still separated roles very similarly to other early cultures.
Men fished, farmed and cooked, while women made clothes, mats, and had the primary responsibility of raising children (Kuyendall, R. 1965, pgs. 4-7). Food for men and women was cooked separately, and men and women were not allowed to share meals under the same roof. (Kirch, P. & O’Day, S. 2003, p. 487). The Hawaiian culture placed a large emphasis on family, ohana, and children. Hardly ever abandoned, if a child’s parents could not care for them for any reason, they were often taken in by another family. The sense of familial duty extended to a person’s extended family as well (Miyares, I. 2008).
Pre contact Hawaiians did not have a written language, however they have strong traditions of oral storytelling, passing down knowledge and legends from generation to generation. The diet of pre contact Hawaiians consisted mostly of starch, including taro, poi, sweet potatoes and yams. Members of high status ate more fatty and greasy foods. Later, after periods of migration, pig became an important part of their diet. Pigs were used as ritual sacrifice animals, for war and religious ceremonies. This can be seen today in the traditional Hawaiian luau ceremony, where a pig is the main course.