Hawaiian Influence in American Culture

Jon Denicola

10/14/2017

Hawaii is a collection of islands that eventually became the United States 50th state.

Though it is small, its peoples culture and music are well-known and instantly recognizable

around the world. Because it is one of the states in America, its influence on American music

came about naturally. Hawaii and the United States didnt always coexist well, and it took a

considerable amount of time for their cooperation to begin.

1,2. A friend, whose name is Jenna, is a 28-year-old, white female who grew up in Hawaii for

much of her childhood. She was born in Colorado and moved to Hawaii when she was about five

years old. The reason for the move was because of her dad. When he was a teenager, he had

visited Hawaii for vacation and just fell in love with the beaches and the culture, she

explained. He decided then that when he had children, he wanted to raise them there. In 1994,

Jenna, her parents, and her younger brother moved to Kihei, Hawaii, which is on the island of

Maui. They would also live in Kula before they would move back to Colorado.

2. Jenna described her upbringing in Hawaii as similar to what she experienced in

Colorado. This even included Hawaiian dress. The Hawaiian shirt is something that is mostly

worn by tourists. Much of what most people would consider as Hawaiian clothing, such as hula

skirts, were only worn for performances or ceremonies. Her family would go to the beach so

often that she remembers mostly wearing bathing suits, even when she would go to school. Some

of the major differences that she brought up had to do with the loyalty to Hawaiian tradition. In
her schools history classes, they emphasized the importance of the Hawaiian culture. She had

mentioned that Hawaiian history took a major priority over American history. They also spent

many years learning the Hawaiian language. She is very rusty now, but bragged that she could

say the name of a fish with a particularly long name- the humuhumunukunukuapuaa. She also

learned to play the ukulele in her elementary music classes, compared to the recorder which is

what is most commonly used in the continental United States. Music was a very important part

of the Hawaiian culture. Some of the iconic musical figures that were studied in school were the

last monarch of Hawaii, Queen Liliuokalani, and Israel Kamakawiwoole.

Within her experience of growing up in Hawaii, she and her family had to deal with a

considerable amount of discrimination because she was in the white subculture. She explained

that the Hawaiian people had come up with the word Haole in the early 1820s when European

immigrants came to work on plantations. Depending on the translator, the name Haole meant

everything from a non-native to white walking dead people and was commonly used as a

derogatory term. She expressed that in many cases, if she wasnt seen with or protected by a

Hawaiian, she was often bullied or simply treated unfairly. Her father, when entering his new job

when they first moved to Hawaii, had to prove that he was an effective and hard worker before

his native coworkers would treat him as an equal.

Eventually, when Jenna was toward the end of her high school years, she and her family

would move back to Littleton, Colorado. Her parents had a growing fear of Jenna and her

brothers quality of life being hindered because of the discrimination, not only was her family

personally discriminated against, but tourism was poorly affecting the Hawaiian economy, as

well as the growing drug problem with crystal meth. The minimum wage was quickly rising to

keep up with the increase of living expenses, as was the number of the homeless population.
Because of these growing problems, Jennas parents thought they would be happier and safer

living back in Colorado.

3. The problems Hawaii faces originate from the many conflicts with English settlers, and

afterwards, the United States annexation of Hawaii. Presently, the discrimination is being

perpetuated by tourism. The environment is being harmed; the Hawaiians feel theyre having to

monetize their culture and traditions, and the economy is being strained.

The first settlers to Hawaii were the Polynesians, estimated to be there in 1000 AD. This

information can only be assumed because the first written records of settlers is from 1778, when

the English explorer, Captain James Cook, arrived at the Hawaiian Islands. (Schorghofer, N.

Kantar, E. & Nogelmeier, M. P.,2014). Cook had received much fame for his success in

spreading European influence and the Christian religion. After trading with the Hawaiians and

learning about their way of life, Cook, with Englands approval, had attempted to take King

Kalaniopuu hostage. This was described later as a misunderstanding; however, Cook was killed

in the attempt by the Hawaiian people (Dye, T. S. & Colleagues, 2011). Though England would

assist King Kamehameha I in uniting the Hawaiian Islands a few years later, the scars of Cooks

actions would remain with the Hawaiian people.

In 1820, the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM) started

sending Protestant missionaries from New England to the Hawaiian Islands. By 1848, 140

missionaries would be sent to Hawaii. When they first arrived, their intention was not to take

over Hawaii. At the time, travel between Hawaii and America was difficult and dangerous. The

missionaries that made the voyage did so with the intention of living there for a major part of

their lives. After living there for some time, they started having children and the clash of culture

and religion began (Schulz, J. 2014).

 Concerned for their new families, these missionaries started pushing for policies that

would give them the ability to own land, enter the political sphere, and convert to Christianity. In

contrast, the Hawaiian culture at the time had included human sacrifice, polygamy, and a

polytheistic religion.

Despite the peace and conformity which Kamehameha brought to a political system

ruled by hereditary chiefs and religious taboos, the increased arrivals of foreign traders

not bound to such beliefs had already caused internal fissures. No Hawaiian gods

murdered the white men who trampled Hawaiian practice by eating and sleeping in the

same quarters with women or partaking of chiefly foods such as bananas, coconuts, and

pork (Schulz, J. 2014).

By 1829, President John Quincy Adams saw the many successes of the ABCFM and

wrote the Hawaiian monarchy, trying to diminish their concerns and convince them to let the

missionaries continue living there and spreading Christianity. In the 1850s, countries such as

Britain, France, and Russia started competing for territory in the Pacific region. This led America

to start conceptualizing the annexation of Hawaii (Schulz, J. 2014).

By 1891, Liliuokalani became the Hawaiian Queen. In the years before, her late brother,

King Kalakaua, had agreed to many political and economic treaties with the United States.

Liliuokalani refused to abide by the former agreements and began replacing the constitution of

1887 with one of her own design (Imperatore, W., 1992) In 1893, Sanford B. Dole organized the

Committee of Safety, a group of American plantation workers, quickly overthrew the Queen,

created a new government, and declared Hawaii a United States Protectorate. Dole created the

independent Republic of Hawaii and Queen Liliuokalani was put back into power. The beginning

of the Spanish-American War in 1898 would finally push the American Congress to approve the
Hawaiian annexation for strategic purposes. In 1900, Hawaii became a United States territory,

and then the United States 50th state in 1959 (History.com, 2010). Even after Hawaii became a

state, however, negative racial stereotypes toward Hawaiians grew due to differences in styles of

government (Williams, R., 2015).

Since Hawaii became a state, it has become a hot spot for tourism. As reported by

Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism, in 2015, Hawaii had received

8,679,564 visitors worldwide. Altogether, the visitors stayed a total of 78,620,086 days, which is

a 3.5% increase from 2014 (Hawaii.gov, 2017). This has had harsh consequences for the

environment, the economy, and the Hawaiian culture.

The environment of Hawaii is fragile, and the native organisms have evolved for

thousands of years without outside interference. Developments created for encouraging tourism

have devastated the environment. As of 1988, it was reported that Hawaii has only 0.2% of the

nation's land, but 72.1% of its species extinctions and 27% of its rare or endangered species. Of

the 150 "natural communities" in the islands, 88 of them are under siege by development

(Matsuoka, J. Kelly, T., 1988).

Hawaiis economy has become dependent on tourism. The Department of Business,

Economic Development and Tourism claims that in 2015, Hawaii made a total of $14,976.90

from tourists (Hawaii.gov, 2017). This focus of the economy has made it fragile. An airline

strike, economic recession or fuel crisis would be catastrophic for a tourist economy sitting in the

middle of the Pacific Ocean and has caused an enormous disparity between the upper and poor

classes (Matsuoka, J. Kelly, T, 1988). According to Hawaiis Wage Standards Division, the

current (2017) minimum wage in Hawaii is $9.25 and estimated to go up to $10.10 in 2018

(Hawaii.gov, 2017). Stated by Hawaiis Research and Economic Analysis, the average rent in
Hawaii for 2015 is $1,500, in comparison to the United States average which is $959. This puts

Hawaii in first place for the highest rent in America (Hawaii.gov, 2017).

Starting at the beginning with a long history of dealing with European and American

imperialism, all the way to the present, with tourism dominating their environment and politics,

the Hawaiians have great contempt for outsiders. Hawaiians have an imbedded tradition of

trying to protect their culture. They are now forced to decide between protecting their tradition

and making a living. Because so many people go there for the culture, Hawaiians have been

forced to sell it and endure other businesses mocking it. Everything from airline flights with

Hawaiian native flight attendants, to the Mormon Church owned Polynesian Cultural Center,

where for a hefty admission fee, visitors can view "real" Polynesians (Mormon Church College

students) enacting "traditional" activities in native dress and authentic settings. (Linnekin, J.,

1982). The prevalence of discrimination from Hawaiian natives to outsiders is firmly rooted in

their history and many of their current affairs and solutions for it will be a long and difficult

process.

4a. The ukulele continues to be a vital part of Hawaiian culture, ceremony, and pride.

Though controversial for the natives, the ukulele is still being used in modern music. The ukulele

soloist and Hawaiian native, Jake Shimabukuro, has become world famous for his innovation of

adapting popular music to the ukulele. His career and the spreading influence of the ukulele

started from a video that was unknowingly posted on YouTube. The video shows his

arrangement of the song My Guitar Gently Weeps, composed by George Harrison and

originally played by The Beatles, and it received over 15 million views. The performance helped

further popularize the ukulele because of the mix of the song and Shimabukuros expertise on the

instrument, showing that the ukulele is not just a toy. The melody of the ukulele solo has a
medium to high range, with the contour being largely ascending with occasional descending

lines, and the movement having both steps and skips. The rhythm/meter is quadruple simple. The

harmony is in a minor key. The texture homophonic and transparent. Because it is a solo, the

only timbre is the ukulele. Though the song is a solo, it covers a wide range of expression. The

tempo is slow but deliberate, with the dynamics increasing from mezzo piano to forte and

coming back down to piano at the end. The style of the solo is soft, bittersweet and calm, getting

more aggressive until the final chorus at the end where it becomes soft, bittersweet, and calm

again. The form of the original song is verse and chorus, but without the lyrics, the song becomes

a rondo form.

4b. The ukulele is still used in many different festivals and celebrations, not only in Hawaii,

but across the world. Origins of the ukulele have not been fully uncovered though. It is thought

that in 1870, the Portuguese found their way to Hawaii, bringing a small lute called a machete

de braga. The Hawaiians would then use what they had on the island to mimic the instrument,

which became the ukulele. The Hawaiians are proud about the ukulele because of its history of

being a significant part of many different ceremonies, from praising their gods, to honoring

royalty, to celebrating holidays (Neuenfeldt, K., 2008).

Shortly, after the annexation of Hawaii, many businesses wanted to take advantage of the

new opportunities they had. At the 1915, San Francisco world fair, Panama-Pacific International

Exposition, had its first Hawaiian Pavilion which featured Hawaiian music. From this event,

interest in the ukulele would quickly spread across America because of its simple structure and

portability. It would reach all the way to the east coast, and continuing to the rest of the world

(King, J., & Tranquada, J., 2003).

4c. Hawaii and America have, and continue to have, a contentious history. Nonetheless,

music has been shared and styles blended between both cultures. The ukulele has been infused

into many different styles and genres of music, and many songs that have topped the charts have

used ukulele. Artists such as Cliff Ukulele Ike Edwards and Arthur Godfrey from the 1920s

televised ukulele music and helped in the manufacture of cheap ukuleles. Although it would see

small successes throughout the years, the ukulele faded out after the invention of the electric

guitar (King, J., & Tranquada, J., 2003).

In 1988, Hawaiian musician Israel Kamakawiwoole recorded his arrangement of the

song Somewhere Over the Rainbow, which was a medley of the two classics, Somewhere

Over the Rainbow, by Judy Garland and What a Wonderful World by Louis Armstrong. This

song quickly became a hit worldwide, and the album it was on, Facing Future, would be the

best-selling Hawaiian album for years to come (Montagne, R., 2011).

The ukulele continues to be a part of American music. In education, the ukulele is

becoming more prevalent as a teaching tool because of its small fingerboard, low-cost, and soft

strings (Greenberg, M., 1992). In modern popular music, musicians such as Sara Bareilles, Train,

Twenty-One Pilots, and Jason Mraz still compose and perform their music using a ukulele. Most

evidently, YouTube has become both a treasure trove and stage for many ukulele artists.

The United States has been and continues to be a vast collection of the cultures it

encounters. Just like in many other parts of American history, Hawaii had many conflicts that

echo into the present. The influence of Hawaiian culture and music is still present in our modern

music and continues to be a way for people to learn and connect.

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