On your visit to the Big Island of Hawaii, you’ll probably get to see a traditional hula dance. If even greater fortune smiles upon you during your stay, you may get to visit the island of Molokai, the place where the hula is said to have originated.
Ancient Hawaiians passed along stories and legends of their culture through the “hula kahiko”, or ancient hula. For many generations they danced and chanted their proud history, customs, ceremonies, and traditions.
Although the hula dance was briefly banned by missionaries, who came to live on the islands in the early 1800s, King David Kalukaua reinstated the hula later that century.
Today, the modern hula, or “hula auwana” is celebrated and enjoyed by people from all walks of life. When you dance the hula, you are perpetuating respect, love and sharing, as well as, expressing a language that represents the heart and soul of the Hawaiian people.
