hula

hula
Name	Hula
Origin	Hawaii
Genre	Dance
Cultural origins	Hawaiian and Polynesia

hula

Hula is a traditional Hawaiian dance form combining choreography, chant, and music to convey narrative, genealogy, and spirituality. Rooted in indigenous Polynesiaan practices and shaped by interactions with explorers, missionaries, and monarchs, it persists as both ceremonial expression and contemporary performance. Practitioners maintain lineage, repertory, and pedagogy through schools, festivals, and institutional programs across the United States and the Pacific.

History

Origins trace to ancestral practices in Polynesia and ritual arts of islands such as Tahiti, Samoa, and Marquesas Islands, where gesture and chant encoded myth and social order. Early Hawaiian kapu systems linked dance to temple rites conducted for aliʻi like Kamehameha I and Kamehameha II, with kahuna and kumu establishing protocols that paralleled regalia of chiefs such as Liholiho. Contact with European explorers including James Cook and subsequent influence from Christian missionaries introduced censorship and suppression in the 19th century, prompting adaptation and hybridization exemplified by conversions and court performances at royal events hosted by figures like Queen Liliʻuokalani. Revival movements in the 20th century involved ethnographers and cultural activists including members of Bishop Museum and artists associated with Royal Hawaiian Hotel presentations, while legal and policy changes in Hawaii and territorial governance facilitated public festivals such as Merrie Monarch Festival.

Styles and Forms

Two principal branches distinguish ancient and modern practice: a chant-backed, sacred form preserved in ritual contexts, and a fluid competitive performance style refined for public stages. The traditional slow style emphasizes oli (chant) and implements used in ritual contexts similar to practices recorded by ethnologists at institutions like Smithsonian Institution and performers connected to Kumu Hula lineages. The modern, faster form integrated influences from Tahitian ʻoteʻa and other island dances, visible in performances promoted at venues including Royal Hawaiian Center and touring productions such as those by entertainers associated with Don Ho and ensembles linked to Polynesian Cultural Center. Regional variants evolved on islands like Maui, Oʻahu, and Kauaʻi, while diasporic communities in places like California, Washington (state), and Japan developed local styles and competitions.

Music and Instruments

Music combines chant, mele (song), and percussion. Traditional instruments include the ipu (gourd drum), pahu (sharkskin drum), ʻuliʻuli (feather gourd rattles), and pu (conch shell), as cataloged in collections at Bishop Museum and documented by researchers from University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. Western instruments such as guitar, ukulele (popularized by musicians linked to Eddie Kamae and Israel Kamakawiwoʻole), and steel guitar introduced during the 19th and 20th centuries augmented accompaniment. Recording artists and producers with ties to labels and venues like Aloha Records and Hawaii Theatre played roles in disseminating mele through radio stations and commercial releases that supported touring troupes and festival stages, including entries at Pan Pacific Festival events.

Costume and Symbolism

Costume elements range from sacred regalia to stage attire. Traditional garments include malo (loincloth) and kapa cloth, with adornments of lei made from native flora such as ʻōhiʻa and hibiscus recognized by botanists at Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum. Modern hula costumes feature paʻu skirts, ti leaf skirts, and elaborate lei crafted by cultural practitioners connected to guilds and artisan cooperatives in regions like Hilo and Waikīkī. Symbols expressed through costume and movement reference deities and narratives involving figures from chants associated with places like Kahoʻolawe and Molokaʻi, while contemporary designers collaborate with institutions such as Honolulu Academy of Arts to present interpretive ensembles for stage and film.

Training, Schools, and Competitions

Instruction occurs in formal halau taught by kumu recognized through apprenticed lineages and certification processes maintained within communities and by educational programs at University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and cultural centers. Halau combine mele mastery, chant literacy, and choreography transmitted in an oral tradition reinforced by written archives at Hawaii State Archives. Competitions and festivals—most notably the annual Merrie Monarch Festival—provide venues for inter-halau exchange, adjudication, and scholarship. Diasporic halau operate in metropolitan areas such as Los Angeles, Honolulu, Seattle, and Tokyo, participating in events organized by associations and government cultural offices including consulates and tourism bureaus.

Cultural Significance and Contemporary Practice

Hula functions as a living repository of Hawaiian language, history, and identity; practitioners intertwine performance with activism, land stewardship, and language revitalization movements associated with organizations like Office of Hawaiian Affairs and charter schools modeled on Hawaiian immersion curricula. Contemporary choreographers draw on transpacific networks linking artists and institutions—touring companies, museums, and festivals—to negotiate authenticity, commercialization, and cultural protocol. Legal and policy debates involving cultural property rights and event regulation have engaged bodies such as National Endowment for the Arts and state cultural agencies, while multimedia projects and academic studies at universities worldwide continue to document evolving forms and meanings.

Category:Hawaiian dance