Hula

Hula is a beautiful dance from the Hawaiian Islands, made by the Native Hawaiians. It is a way to express chants called oli or songs called mele through movement. The dance tells a story or shows the meaning of the words with actions.

There are two main types of hula: Hula ʻAuana and Hula Kahiko. Kahiko is the older style, performed long ago. ʻAuana came later and uses songs with instruments like the guitar, the ʻukulele, and the double bass. Dancers can sit or stand, and they use their hands, feet, and hips to show feelings, nature, or ideas.

Hula has many hand movements that match the words in a song or chant. For example, hands can show the sway of a tree or the motion of ocean waves. There are similar dances from other Polynesian islands, but hula is special to the Hawaiian Islands.

Hula kahiko

Hula kahiko is the old way of doing the hula dance. It started before 1894 and does not use modern instruments like guitars. It has many styles, from serious to fun. Many of these dances were made to honor chiefs and were only performed for them. Today, it is called "Traditional" Hula.

Many hula dances are special and spiritual, dedicated to Hawaiian gods or goddesses. Dancers learning these dances had to be very careful. Ceremonies celebrated when they finished learning and could perform.

Hula kahiko today is performed by dancing to old chants. These dances often use traditional costumes and look serious and respectful, showing honor for their history.

Chant (Oli)

Hawaiian history was told through spoken stories, not writing. These stories were kept in memories through special chants and genealogies. Chants told about creation, myths, kings, and important people and events.

There are many types of chants, such as prayers and stories. Chants can be performed with or without dancing.

The Hawaiian language has many words to describe how a voice sounds when chanting. Styles include kepakepa, which sounds like fast talking, and olioli, which is like singing with smooth notes.

A law in 1896 stopped the use of the Hawaiian language in schools. But starting in the late 1960s, people began to bring back Hawaiian traditions, including the language and chants.

In hula schools, students ask permission to learn from the teacher through chants. This shows how important chants are today.

Oli, or chanting, is a key part of Hawaiian music. It changes based on where and when it is performed. There are five main styles of oli.

Instruments and implements

• Ipu—single gourd drum
• Ipu heke—double gourd drum
• Pahu—sharkskin covered drum; considered sacred
• Puniu—small knee drum made of a coconut shell with fish skin (kala) cover
• ʻIliʻili—water-worn lava stone used as castanets
• ʻUlīʻulī—feathered gourd rattles (also ʻulili)
• Pūʻili—split bamboo sticks
• Kālaʻau—rhythm sticks

Dress/outfits

Traditional female dancers wore a simple wrapped skirt called a pāʻū, but often went without a top. Today, the pāʻū might be longer, made of tapa, a kind of bark cloth. Dancers might also wear decorations like necklaces, bracelets, anklets, and many lei.

Sometimes, dancers wear a skirt of green kī (Cordyline fruticosa) leaves over the pāʻū.

Traditional male dancers wore a simple loincloth called a malo. They also wore necklaces, bracelets, anklets, and lei.

Performances

Hula dances for everyday fun were easy and relaxed. But when dancing for chiefs, it was very important to do everything perfectly. Hula dances were a way to show respect and honor to the chief.

Performances for chiefs often started with men dancing and ended with women. There were dances about the chief's family and name. All these dances had to be done without any mistakes.

Important visitors were also welcomed with hula performances.

Hula ʻauana

Modern hula started when traditional Hawaiian dance mixed with Western styles. This new style is called hula ʻauana. It often tells stories about events from the 1800s and later. The costumes are less revealing, and the music sounds more like Western music.

The songs in hula ʻauana are sung like popular music, with one main voice and sometimes others joining in. These songs can be about many things—people, places, events, or feelings. Dancers often use string instruments like the steel guitar and bass. They might also use a special rattle called an ʻUlīʻulī. Costumes for hula ʻauana are usually Western-style, with dresses for women and pants for men. The colors and designs of the clothing help tell the story of the song. Dancers may perform in bare feet or shoes, depending on the dance.

Training

Hula is taught in special schools or groups called hālau. The teacher of hula is known as the kumu hula. The word kumu means "source of knowledge" or "teacher".

In many hula schools, there is a clear structure. It usually starts with the kumu (the teacher), followed by the alaka'i (the leader), kōkua (helpers), and then the 'ōlapa (dancers) or haumana (students). Not every hālau follows this exact structure, but it is common. Most hula hālau have a special chant that students say to ask for permission to enter their practice space. After saying the chant, they wait for the kumu to respond. Once the kumu finishes their response, the students are allowed to enter. One famous chant used for this is called Kūnihi Ka Mauna/Tūnihi Ta Mauna.

History

There are many stories about where and how hula began. One story says that Laka, the goddess of hula, created the dance on the island of Molokaʻi. Another story tells of Hiʻiaka, who danced to calm her sister, the volcano goddess Pele. There are also tales of Pele dancing the first hula when she found a safe place to live on the island of Hawaiʻi.

In the 1800s, new leaders from America did not like the hula and asked that it not be performed in public. But people still enjoyed it in private. Later, King David Kalākaua and Princess Lili'uokalani helped bring hula back to celebrate Hawaiian culture.

In the early 1900s, hula began to change as it was shown in shows for tourists and in movies. Some people kept the traditional ways alive, and interest in hula grew again in the 1970s. Today, the Merrie Monarch Festival is a big event where dancers from around the world come to celebrate hula.

Films

Here are some films about hula:

• Kumu Hula: Keepers of a Culture (1989) Directed by Robert Mugge.
• Holo Mai Pele - Hālau ō Kekuhi (2000) Directed by Catherine Tatge
• American Aloha : Hula Beyond Hawaiʻi (2003) By Lisette Marie Flannery & Evann Siebens
• Hula Girls (2006)
• The Haumana (2013)
• Kumu Hina (2014)