Introduction

I am creating my storybook around Hawaiian Mythology. I will first give some background about the Hawaiian culture to help you understand more about the people. The environment led to wonderful things like dances, art forms, and religious songs to celebrate the beauty of the surroundings. I found some of the cultural information spoken about in this introduction from this source.

A little background about the islands of Hawaii, if you're unfamiliar with it. It's comprised of eight islands that make up the whole state. The islands are named Kaua'i, O'ahu, Moloka'i, Lana'i, Kaho'olawe, Maui, and Hawai'i. Not all of the islands can be viewed in the header image above, so I wanted to clarify the geography for you. If you want to see the whole picture, I have a link to the image below that will show the entirety of the image. I also have a map inserted at the bottom of this page if you prefer to see it that way. Now, I'll go a little bit more about the type of environment this culture is located in to help grasp why the mythology is set in certain ways. The islands were formed by volcanic activity from the Hawaii hotspot. Even today there are volcanoes on some of the islands that are either dormant or active. Also, due to the location on the map, the weather in Hawaii is very tropical, and this causes for only two seasons which are the dry season and the wet season. More information about the islands and the geography of Hawaii can be found here.

Now I will be going into depth about the actual cultural aspects. The more well-known dance, the hula, through the beautiful music and graceful movements represents the spirit of Hawaii. This dance is believed to be first performed by a god or goddess in the culture, and because of this is considered a sacred ritual. A link to an example of this dance can be found here, I would recommend watching to help get a better understanding of what I'm describing. As time went on, it became more part of celebrations and not just part of worship. The movements are meant to represent many things from living things, like animals and plants, to actions like war.

The songs of the culture are a mix of modern and ancient influences and meant to worship nature. An example of one of the songs you may know can be found here. I recognized the song from the Disney movie Lilo and Stitch, but this version only has instruments. The song lyrics tell of the way of life and the different places in Hawaii. The early music was more religious and included musical instruments accompanied by chants. Due to the geographic location, many of the instruments had to be made from trees, plants, and shells because no metal was present. People would make trumpets out of conch shells or drums made from gourds. You can find more information about the ipu (or the gourd instrument) here. There are various music festivals to celebrate and showcase the Hawaiian music. Here is a link to more traditional Hawaiian music to understand it a little more. And here is a link to the more contemporary music of the culture. The difference I've heard is the instrument usage in the two. The contemporary music is accompanied by an electric guitar; but not the traditional.

Now that I've introduced you somewhat to the culture of Hawaii, I'll be sharing some amazing stories from this culture with you! You can start with the first story called the SharkMan, happy reading!

Banner Image: Hawaii