Courtesy Buhop Mu.seum.

The early Polynesians were a race that devoted a large share of their time to sports, games, and amuse­ments_ These activities served to keep the people physically fit and mentally alert and, in addition, afforded them a welcome relief from a life which was for most natives painfully stress­ful. Further, such activities provided a wholesome release from the oppres­sive weight of the kapu ( tabu) sys­tem. To gain a better understanding of ancient Hawaiian sports, it is nec­essary lo review one conception of Hawaiian civilization.

The race of people we know as the Polynesians probably migrated, in the course of centuries, from the Asian mainland toward the archi-

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Sports in Early Hawaiian Culture William J. Bruhn, Jr.

pelago of Indonesia. These migrants pushed on, perhaps by the pressure of warring tribes behind them or by their own restlessness, and eventually became acquainted with the thou­sands of islands, large and small, that constitute Indonesia.

It is likely that these proto-Poly­nesians first learned seamanship in this archipelago's relatively safe and narrow channels, gradually changing from land·dwellers to a race of sail­ors. In more and more daring ven­tures, they sailed eastward, entering the open sea, hoping to find islands somewhere over the horizon. From the first of these groups-the islands of Melanesia-the pioneers sailed east into the greatly vaster water triangle,

the islands of which make up today's Polynesia. The experience of each new generation helped to perfect the great ocean-going canoes and added bits of information to the seafarer's lore about stars, currents, winds, and seasons.

Through the study of basic vocabu­lary it was determined that the ulti­mate source of Polynesian language could be traced to prehistoric Indo­nesia. As the Polynesians moved east­ward, these Indonesian words-sepa­rated farther and farther from their source-became worn down to sim­pler forms. By studying the amount of change in the Polynesian language and estimating the length of time required for such changes to take

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place, Dr. S. H. Elbert of the Uni­versity of Hawaii estimated that the western border of Polynesia was oc· cupied by at least 1500 B.C. It was estimated that Tahiti was occupied by Polynesians by 550 B.C. From Tahi­ti, the restless ones moved on to Hawaii. Recent radiocarbon tests from the earliest known camp sites in Hawaii indicated that these Hawai­ian islands were occupied by 500 A.D.

Two seemingly divergent views demonstrate that possibly there were two routes which the Polynesians supposedly followed. The older view was that it ran eastward through Indonesia, along the coast of New Guinea, and through Melanesia into Central Polynesia, from which the race spread to the outlying groups of islands.1 Recent research has de­scribed a different route, a northern one through Micronesia. It has been said that along this route, from the eastern Carolines one group may have gone northeastward and found the Hawaiian Islands, while the main body made its way southeastward into Central Polynesia.2

Regardless of whichever direction they came from, these first Hawaiians and their descendants lived isolated in their little island world for several hundred years. After some centuries of isolation, there followed a period of perhaps 200 years (between the beginning of the eleventh and the close of the fourteenth centuries} when there was a great migration movement throughout Polynesia, r e s u 1 t i n g in m a n y voyages among the different island groups. During this time, Hawaii was visited by adventurous travelers from Cen· tral Polynesia and some Hawaiians made the long journey to the south­ern lands. Many of those who came to Hawaii in this period remained as permanent dwellers on these north­ern islands. The newcomers possessed a culture more highly developed than

DECEMBER 1111

that previously existing in Hawaii, and they became the dominant ele· ment in the population. Their chiefs became the ruling class and their priests took over the direction of the religious observances.

The early Polynesian explorers voyaged from Tahiti in twin·hulled canot>.s which were probably similar to the great canoes that Captain Cook saw in use in Hawaii, in 1778. These canoes varied greatly in size. One measured by Cook's expedition was seventy feet long, twelve feet broad, and nearly three and one-half feet in depth. There are reports of canoes over one hundred feet in length, which could carry up to one hundred forty men.3

Social Structure•

Government, social organization, e c o n o m i c system, and religion were closely interwoven in the Hawai· ian way of life as it developed in these early centuries. The general pnt· tern, except in religion, was quite similar to the feudal system of me· dieval Europe. At the top were the chiefs of various grades. At the bot· tom were the common people who did the rough work and were subject to the will of the chiefs. There was no middle class in the modern sense, but the kahunas (priests, doctors, sorcer­ers, navigators and experts in var­ious other lines) comprised a class closely associated with the chiefs.

Viewed as a whole, the ancient Ha­waiians had a civilization somewhat resembling the ancient civilizations of the Mediterranean region and Asia. It exhibited a highly cultivated upper class supported upon a substructure composed of an underprivileged low­er class. The Makaainana (mass of the people) of Hawaii had little op· portunity and little incentive to im· prove their status. But, on the other hand, they were probably less "down trodden" and they lived in a more comfortable environment than the

lower classes in Europe during the eighteenth century.•

As in other parts of the world where feudalism prevailed, wars were very frequent, and ambitious chiefs devoted much of their time to train· ing and preparing for them. No standing army was ever routinely maintained, but there were standing warriors (koa). They were individ­uals who made fighting their profes· sion and were champions of the battle field. They often engaged in single combat while tribes of both sides watched and awaited the outcome.

In times of peace the whole adult male population was virtually a re­serve army. Each individual kept his own weapons at hand. What charac­terized Polynesian fighting more than anything else was hand-to-hand com· bat. Therefore, sports played a domi· nant roll in keeping warriors pre­pared for any scrimmage at a mo· ment's notice.

Religion played a great part in the life of the people. Their religion was a kind of nature worship. The Hawaiians were impressed by the manifestations in the world about them, of a mysterious power, unseen and little understood. Their cere· monies aimed to establish and pre· serve proper relationships between man and this unseen power. The gods were personifications of natural ob· jects and the forces of nature. Hence there were many gods.

Closely related to the religious practices was the kapu system or the "law" system of old Hawaii. Kapu is the Hawaiian form of the word tabu, meaning sacred or forbidden. In old Hawaii, there were thousands of rules that made up a system of pro­hibitions covering literally every exigency. It was kapu to approach too near the king-everything which had touched the body of the king was kapu and was kept from getting into the hands of the enemy. The temple enclosure was kapu to women.

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The innermost parts of the temple were kapu lo all but high priest and king. Special varieties of fish were kapu to women. Talking was forbid­den when the fishermen went out, and the paddlers could not speak on the way to the fishing grounds. Bananas were kapu to women as so was pork. The king could make new kapus, but even he had to obey the law of the land. The penalty for breaking a kapu was death, and the people believed that death could follow the breaking of a kapu even if the law breaker was not immediately taken and killed.5

Ancient Hawaiian civilization under the strict kapu system was indeed oppressive to both the chiefly classes and the common people. The many games and pastimes, to which the people wholeheartedly devoted them· selves were varied enough to amuse the young and old, both as partic­ipants and spectators. Great sports tournaments ( mokomoko) were held by day and quieter amusements en· lertained the natives far into the night.

Except during short kapu periods many of the games were enjoyed throughout the year. But the four month period known as the Maka­hiki was an annual holiday season devoted to games and festivities and dedicated lo Lono-i-ka Makahiki, god of sports.6 During this season corresponding to the months of October through January in our present calendar year, work ceased, wars stopped, and the people paid their taxes, then played and danced.

There customarily was an interest­ing incident at the end of the festival. The king went offshore in a canoe. When he came in he stepped ashore and a group 0£ men with spears rushed him. It was believed that un· less the king was sacred enough to be superior to death, he no longer was worthy of representing Lono. This sort of ceremony existed in many other ancient religions in the world.

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For instance, Jupiter was the god of rain and fertility to the Romans. The king represented Jupiter, and each year, according to early Roman trn· clition, the king had to submit lo tests lo prove his sacredness and his right to embody the fertility of Jupiter. The test was either a foot race or a fight in which the man who won be­came king. This ceremony was cele­brated in February which was also the exact time of the conclusion of the Makahiki in Hawaii.7

Each district had its kahua or field where such sports as boxing, wres· tling, bowling and spear throwing thrilled the multitudes gathered to encourage their champions and jeer their competitors. The sen nearby pro· vided for swimming, surfing, diving and canoe racing. On a steep hill not far away, n course would be surfaced for the holua sleds of the chiefs. On other hillside slopes the commoners would slide down grassy or muddy surfaces on ti leaves.

Belting in Athletic•

The early Hawaiians had a passion for betting in athletics and in this re­spect distinguished them from other Pol' nesians. While this added to the intensity of the excitement, it led to the desecration of many of their sports and the professionals caused much in­dividual suffering on the gamblers. In the intensity of the moment a man would sometimes rashly bet all of his most precious possessions and lose nil, then in desperation he might bet his bones, and so lose his life and his personal liberty. One of the offi­cers with Captain Cook witnessed a typical sight after a foot race and rendered this account, "I saw a man in a most violent rage, tearing his hair and beating his breast, after losing three hatchets at one of these races. These hatchets he had just before purchased from us with half his possessions."S

Every important contest was pre·

ceded by consultation with the augu· ries. The gods were approached with prayers and offerings to win their favor. Every sport had a god who presided over the contest. Every man believed that when he felt he was in harmonious relations with the mys· terious forces about him, he was quite likely to accomplish super human feats of strength and skill. He would have true mana- supcr natural power which was believed to belong to the gods.

Mitchell9 has grouped ancient Hawaiian games and sports into five groups. Group one consisted of games of strength and endurance played in a sports arena. These games were abundantly evident during the Maka­hiki at which time the men trained for war and at the same time pro· vided entertainment for the chiefs around their household. Mokomoko - brutal bare knuckles boxing, var· ious forms 0£ wrestling, foot racing, and tests of strength by lifting heavy stones were some of the activities in this first group.

The second category was that of skill. Most of these skills involved im· plements which were thrown, thrust or rolled. An outstanding example of the contests was the Pana'iole, a sport of shooting rats with bow and arrows that was engaged in only by the chiefs. Kaka ln'au- fencing with wooden spears and lhe pahe'e -sliding a short javelin along a grassy course were two other pastimes that required skill in throwing and sliding objects.

Water sports made up the third category. They were extremely popu­lar with everyone. It wouldn't be un­common after a very rainy day to see youngsters sailing coconut bloom sheaths down flooded pathways. He'e nalu (surf riding) could be seen everyday of the year in old Hawaii regardless of climatic conditions. Children were exceedingly enthusi·

continued on page 23

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