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THE HULA OF HAWAII by Peter J. Leibert

The hula is defined in most dictionaries as being a Hawaiian dance marked by a flowing, series of gestures without words. Probably this definition would have been correct back in the 5th century when the original Polynesian settlers began arriving in the Sandwich Islands. But then the Europeans arrived - from Portugal, England and even America. Then the Asian settlers came, and collectively all of these must have contributed to Hawaii’s present multicultural dance.

Before the “Europeans” arrived in Hawaii in the year 1778, the hula was very closely related to the religious practices of the Polynesian settlers. Dances were accompanied by a log drum - the Pahu - and were reportedly directed to the gods. There was and/or even is a goddess of the hula named Laka.

When the Protestant missionaries from the newly established United States of America arrived in 1820, they made a major effort to abruptly change the rules for hula practitioners. These missionary professors with “their” western values began banning anything to do with the hula. “It was uncivilized!” As a result, most of the Halaus (teachers of the hula) and the Haumanas (students) went underground.

About 50 years later, February 1874 to be exact, a change in the throne resulted in a major attitude change from the top down. The new King, David Kalakaua, challenged the christianized Hawaiians and non-Hawaiians and began a program which encouraged the practice of the traditional arts. He proclaimed, “hula is the language of the heart and therefore the heartbeat of the Hawaiian people.” During the period of Kalakaua’s reign, hula practitioners started developing a new form of the hula - the hula ku’i, (ku’i means to combine the old and the new).

Hawaiian poetry, chanted songs, dance, and costuming were adapted to develop new approaches for performing the traditional hula. A gourd instrument - the ipu; split bamboo rattles - the Pu’illi; and stone castanets - the ’ili’lli; became increasingly associated with the new hula. Kalakaua himself composed music and even translated a number of ancient myths and chants into English which were then adapted into hula dance performances.

Hollywood and a significant increase in Hawaii tourism during the 1930s and 1940s brought the song-accompanied hula into a new era. This is the period of time when the hula was transformed from its former religious context into an image of dancers wearing cellophane skirts and seductive satin sarongs, a lot of emphasis on hip movements, and a major expansion in English-language lyrics.

During the latter decades of the 20th century, there has been a resurgence of ethnic pride in the pre-ku’i performing arts, especially among the younger generation. You now are seeing more and more chant-accompanied hula being revived. New dances are being choreographed in the older style. Throughout it all, the term hula still refers to movement and gestures. The most important component of the hula remains poetry - mele. Poetry is related to love (mele ho’oipoipo), to prayers (mele pule), to praise of the land (mele ‘aina), and to praise for the chiefs (mele inoa). Aloha and Mahalo!