Portuguese Immigration to Hawaii

Introduction

In this project, we studied the impacts of Portuguese Immigration. We focused on the Historical, Cultural, Social, and Economic effects of their original arrival in 1878. Historically, most Portuguese immigrants came as family groups who planned to stay and make a new home. The Portuguese brought many aspects of our culture such as Malasadas, Portuguese Sausage, Pao Doce, and the Ukulele. The Portuguese were at first in lower classes we believe but then slowly moved up in the social classes. People who migrated from Portugal also affect the economics of Hawaii by eventually influencing the creation of music shops. Portuguese people had an effect also on the culture in Hawaii because of their influence on the creation of the ukulele and it's their contributions to the diversity in foods. The people who are from Portugal and migrated to Hawaii had a very large impact on the future of Hawaii.

Historical Characteristics of Portuguese immigration to Hawaii

From 1878 to 1911, many large groups of Portuguese came to Hawaii to work on sugar plantations. Specifically, most were from the islands of Madeira and the Azores. While most non-Portuguese immigrants who arrived in Hawaii were single men, the Portuguese came as families who planned to stay. Since the Portuguese were European, they were offered better contracts than those from Asia. This included an acre of land, better working conditions and often serving as supervisors. They were also offered American Citizenship when Hawaii became a territory in 1898. Once one had completed their contract, many started their own businesses or farms. Many opened restaurants and bakeries or became Paniolo working at ranches on horseback.

The first Portuguese immigrants came on the German ship, The Priscilla. There were 120 men, women, and children on board, plus 11 stowaways when the ship departed for Hawaii. Most were likely from Madeira. They departed June 1, 1878, from Funchal, Madeira, and arrived on September 30, 1878, in Honolulu, Hawaii. They were at sea for 121 days, and, luckily, experienced zero deaths and even one birth.

The Priscilla

Culture Brought to the Islands

Cultural Significance of Portuguese Migration to Hawaii

From the perspective of cultural influence, the culture brought by the Portuguese could be categorized into three parts, religious beliefs, food, and music. First of all, in 1827, the first Catholic missionaries arrived in Hawaii, and after that, the Catholic community grew larger gradually. The community starts to sign contracts with the government to build churches and enlarge the group. Second of all, food when the Portuguese arrived in Hawaii they also brought local food back in Portuguese, the three most famous and still popular foods that they bought are, Malasadas, Pao Doce, and Portuguese Sausage. Malasadas are Portuguese donuts without a hole in the middle. After importing into Hawaii, after arriving in Hawaii, it expands to various kinds that contain filling such as coconut, passionfruit, and pineapple. Pao Doce is a traditional Portuguese sweet bread, usually served with coffee at breakfast. Portuguese sausage, also known as Linguiça, is a type of sausage from South America and Portugal, made of smoke-cured pork seasoned with Calabrian chili. It could be accompanied by rice, beans, and others. Finally, the most significant cultural impact of the Portuguese on Hawaii is music, because of the musical instrument known as the “ukulele”, which is a smaller guitar with fewer strings, it is from Portugal and it's very popular in Hawaii, it is based on several different string instruments back in Portugal. Brought to Hawaii by Portuguese immigrants in the 1880s.

Social Experience of Portuguese Immigrants

People with Portuguese ancestry were treated differently once they migrated to Hawaii. Based on research we believe that the Oligarchy system greatly affected their everyday lives; because when they went to the store they went to the company store. When they went to work they worked for major companies. Every aspect of their lives was controlled by the major companies who employed them. Most of Hawaii’s economy at the time was controlled by the major U.S.-based businesses, most of which were large fruit and sugar plantations. Nowadays, there is a Portuguese and Historical Center in Honolulu that is a focal point for Portuguese culture in Hawaii. “The majority of early Portuguese immigrants were men from the Azores, a group of islands and islets in the North Atlantic Ocean. These men were largely recruited to work on American whaling ships. There was also immigration to the Sandwich Islands (now the state of Hawaii), where the Portuguese went originally to labor on sugar plantations” (https://www.everyculture.com/multi/Pa-Sp/Portuguese-Americans.html) Nowadays, there is a Portuguese and Historical Center in Honolulu that is a focal point for Portuguese culture in Hawaii.

Economic Results of the Portuguese Immigration

From 1878 to 1911, enormous groups of Portuguese citizens migrated to Hawaii. Once the migrants arrived their economic status was to work on plantations. Even though they were farmers most Portuguese brought their families and supported them with a farmer's income. However, the Portuguese were treated divergently compared to the Asian workers because they were European. The Portuguese were offered an acre of land, a home to live in, and better working constraints. On the hierarchy of the plantations, the Portuguese were still placed below haole owners. So because of this hierarchy, the Portuguese were constantly employed as middlemen betwixt the owners and the Asian workers. Due to this they became lunas or supervisors and worked as strikebreakers whenever there was a labor dispute. The Portuguese group also, later on, opened shops and restaurants. For example, the Portuguese people influenced the creation of the ukulele, and later on, the Portuguese opened music shops because of their influence on music. In conclusion, people who were Portuguese did not have an easy time when they first officially migrated to Hawaii.

Conclusion

Throughout this assignment, we identified Portuguese Immigration effects on the islands of Hawaii. We worked on the Historical, Cultural, Social, and Economic outcomes of the immigration of the Portuguese people to work on plantations. Most Portuguese immigrants were with their families and carried aspects of their culture with them. They started off in the lower classes but they slowly began to move up in the ranks of society. Migrants from Portugal affected the economy of Hawaii by working off their contracts and introducing a new instrument, the ukulele, profiting future music shops. Portuguese migrants affected our culture by influencing the popularity of the ukulele and their contributions to the diversity in foods. Portuguese people who migrated to Hawaii had and still have an immense impact on the future of Hawaii.

Citations

“Featuring Portuguese Culture & Historical Center | Hawaii – – MyLuso.” MyLuso, 3 June 2022, https://myluso.com/featuring-portuguese-culture-historical-center-hawaii/. Accessed 27 September 2022.

“Hawaii: Life in a Plantation Society | Japanese | Immigration and Relocation in U.S. History | Classroom Materials at the Library of Congress.” Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/classroom-materials/immigration/japanese/hawaii-life-in-a-plantation-society/. Accessed 27 September 2022.

“Portuguese Emigration to Hawaii.” Portuguese Historical Museum, 10 April 2019, https://portuguesemuseum.org/?page_id=1808&category=&exhibit=4&event=60. Accessed 27 September 2022.

“Portuguese workers arrive - Hawaii History - Short Stories.” HawaiiHistory.org, http://www.hawaiihistory.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=ig.page&PageID=305&returntoname=year. Accessed 27 September 2022.

“Ships to Hawaii – Portuguese Family History Collections of Hawai'i.” Portuguese Family History Collections of Hawai'i, https://portuguesecollections.org/ships/. Accessed 27 September 2022.

“Hawaii's Rainbow of Cultures and How They Got to the Islands.” Hawaii Magazine, 26 September 2017, https://www.hawaiimagazine.com/hawaiis-rainbow-of-cultures-and-how-they-got-to-the-islands/. Accessed 27 September 2022.

Norden, Ernest E. “Portuguese Americans - Early history, The eighteenth century, The

nineteenth century.” World Culture Encyclopedia, https://www.everyculture.co m/multi/P

a-Sp/Portuguese-Americans.html. Accessed 27 September 2022.

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