DID YOU KNOW? Some Hula Trivia

1. Halau hula was traditionally used to refer to the long house or building where hula instruction was held. It is now used to describe a hula school or group. (1)

2. Hilo Hattie was actually named Clarissa Haili. She was a native Hawaiian elementary school teacher. Clarissa became famous for doing her comic hula "When Hilo Hattie Does the Hilo Hop" and for singing and dancing "Cockeyed Mayor of Kaunakakai" cross-eyed. Today there is a popular Hawaiian clothing chain named after her stage character, Hilo Hattie. (2)

3. It is popular belief that hula was traditionally danced by only men. However, there is no documented evidence that states this. The earliest written records actually document women dancing hula in 1778. (3) Furthermore, Mary Kawena Pukui thanks women for learning the old hula dances when the men forgot during a time that "hula [was] looked down upon". (4)

4. Queen Lili`uokalani was one of the first people to wear Hawaiian heirloom jewelry in the 1860's. It was a fashion she discovered during her trip to England that was originally worn by English royals while mourning. Queen Lili`uokalani's bracelet read, "Ho`omana`o Mau" or "Lasting Remembrance". Soon after this, flowers and other royal symbols were engraved on bracelets like the queen's and it became a popular fad for all wealthy island women.(5)

5. It is thought that the mele ma`i or procreation dance was reintroduced after a period where it practically vanished because many Hawaiians were becoming sterile due to diseases and royal interfamilial marriage. (6)

6. The ku`i step was created when a member of the Hawaiian royal court was unable to dance because she was wearing a European dress. In the end, she agreed to do the hula but improvised the ku`i or sideward kick so that she wouldn't trip on her gown. (6)

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1. Ku Mai Ka Po`E Hula: Directory of Hula Resources, Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Compiled by Manu Boyd, 1996, p. 36. [711 Kapi`olani Blvd., Ste. 500, Honolulu, HI 96813; (808) 594-1888]

2. Ching, Carrie. Things Hawaii: A Celebration of the History, Landmarks, Flavors, Trends & Traditions that make Hawai`i Special. , Mutual Publishing LLC: 2004, p. 46.

3. Barrere, Dorothy B. Hula Historical Perspectives: Pacific Anthropological Records No. 30, Bernice P. Bishop Museum, January 1980, p. 13. [ISBN 0-930897-89-7]

4. Pukui, Mary Kawena. Hula Historical Perspectives: Pacific Anthropological Records No. 30, Bernice P. Bishop Museum, January 1980, pp. 74, 75.

5. Ching, Carrie. Things Hawaii: A Celebration of the History, Landmarks, Flavors, Trends & Traditions that make Hawai`i Special. Mutual Publishing LLC: 2004, p. 44.

6. Stagner, Ishmael. Hula (Pamphlets Polynesia Series Number 4)Institute for Polynesian Studies, Brigham Young University-Hawai`i Campus, 1985, p. 14.