Culture and History of Hawaii

There is a lot to learn about the culture and history of Hawaii. From the first Polynesians who explored the Hawaiian Islands, to King Kamehameha and the monarchy, to modern day statehood.

It is believed that the human migration fanned out from south east Asia several thousand years ago. And over time people explored and populated the islands of the south pacific, arriving in the Hawaiian islands sometime in the 1st century AD. The general area covering Hawaii, to New Zealand, to Samoa is called Polynesia. The people of this region, shared a similar language, way of life, and beliefs.

Throughout the culture and history of Hawaii, most of the peoples daily needs were provided for from the ocean. They were highly skilled in fishing, navigating, and canoe building. When they came to Hawaii they brought with them taro, breadfruit, yams, bananas, palms of various kinds, pigs, dogs and chickens, as well as medicinal plants and herbs.

The Hawaiian system involved the king, the priests, and the common people, who were divided by heritage and occupational skill, such as farming, fishing, canoe building, tool making, and medicine. Social order was kept in their culture by the kapu system. This was a set of laws and taboos.

The King, being at the top, was considered, a divine descendant of the "gods". There were strict rules to protect the Kings holy power. Such as, no commoner’s shadow could fall on the King, or the commoner could be put to death. (Most royal members were sensitive about their role in society, so they avoided contact with commoners in the day time.)

More kapu rules included; men and women could not eat meals together, woman couldn't eat pork, and bananas, certain other foods were saved only for royalty upon penalty of death, such as the moi fish, which was reserved only for the king. Some of these laws were very strict by western standards, but they kept the society in working order for many centuries.

Although their technology was little more than stone, wood and woven fiber, they were highly skilled and knowledgable about the environment, astronomy, and the ocean. They were very spiritual, and as a people they were very fit and healthy.

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