Hello my darlings! Today I'm back with another post about Hawaiian culture. Today I'll be telling you what Hula is what it means to the Hawaiians.

 

Hula is an ancient form of dance and it is based of beautiful gestures that we foreigners might not know about, but they stell stories. Since Hawaiians didn't have a written lanague untill the arrival of the Europeans, they passed on their stories through dance where each arm movement, each leg placement means a being, a place, a situation or even an emotion. For example, you may know how to describe the sea by putting ones arm stretched to the side and the other one bent to the same direction and swaying the hands in an up-and-down movement.

Hula has hundreds of steps and styles, but the four basic steps every hula dance has are: the Kaholo - the running or traveling step to either side, the Ka'o - swaying hips, the Hela - which is a leg extension, and the final step, the 'Uwehe - which incorporates the previous 3 plus a bending of the knees and portrays an in-and-out movement. Hula can be divided in Kahiko, the ancient hula from hundreds of years ago, and Auana, the modern hula, adapted with European dance moves. This is the style of hula tourists see more often when at a hotel in Hawaii. If you want to experience real pure hula, try going to the Volcanoes National Park on the Big Island. They usually have hula shows at the entrance of the park.

Hula dancers dress with a plethora of ornaments, begining with the Hakulei  and Lei which are a head garland and necklace that can be made with any flower, but they change according to what dance is going to be portrayed. For example, when doing hula dedicated to Pele, the volcano goddess, the dancers wear both a hakulei and lei made of Ohia Lehua, a plant which is very resistant and is the first to grow from under the lava flows and grows to display a beautiful red flower. Then we can have a top which is often woven in traditional Polynesian patterns and a Ti leaf skirt (Cordyline Fruticosa) where the leaves are gathered, the hard middle section of the leaves are removed and they are inserted in between the gaps of a Hala leaf braid (Pandanus tectorius) and then we have the Kupe'e, the ankle and wrist bracelets. They, along with the Hakulei and Lei, can be made of diverse flowers and leaves. Hula dancers may also opt to wear a dress made of fabric which often is of the color dedicated to the deity in question. (Pele is always red or deep oranges).

Then we have the most popular musical instruments that widely rely on percussion and strings.

The most well known instrument, is recent in Hawaiin history: the Ukulele, meaning "jumping flea" in Hawaiian, due to the player's fast hand movements. It was brought by the Portuguese immigrants in the 19th century when they came to the islands to work on the sugar plantations. Today, 10% of the population of Hawaii is Portuguese OR is of Portuguese ancestry and we have left many traces of our culture there. This one is the strongest. It can also be noticed by surnames and the Masaladas, a typical sweet snack from Madeira Island (from the Portuguese archipelago), and tons of other small traits deeply rooted in Hawaiian culture.

The second-most well-known instrument is an Ipu, a Hawaiian gourd that is hollow inside and polished outside and the sound is made by hitting it with the hand and from there various rythms can be made to acompany the hula. Speaking of acompanying, Oli (chants) are often sung to acompany the hula. The we have the Ipu Heke which is the same as the Ipu but has a smaller gourd on top forming an 8 and it produces a deeper sound when hit with the hand and on the floor on a Lau Hala matress.
Then we have the Pahu drum, which is made of coconut tree trunk and the top where we play it, from dryed shark skin. They are often kept at temples because they are considered a sacred instrument. There are other drums made of coconuts also, called Puniu.

Then lastly we have the ʻIliʻili, which are seaworn lava stones used as castanets and the Pu'ili, bamboo sticks that are played by hitting one another.
 
All these instruments and clothing turn the hula the most beautiful and unique form of dance (and art) in the world to me. It's wonderful that the hula and it's unstruments are totally based in nature; a true connection to the land, I think. Hula can also be a lifestyle, where the dancers don't cut off their hair (that's why they always have long hair) to devote themselves in the best way possible, in the belief that nothing in nature changes. Auana hula is diferent, thought. Hair can be styled and adorned with many flowers on the side of a bun or an elaborate updo.