Island History
The arrival of Captain Cook, missionaries and whalers brought more than a different culture to the islands. During the reign of Kamehameha III, the native population - exposed to a number of foreign diseases - diminished by 50 percent. The native population could not provide the plantations and other enterprises with enough laborers.
An act passed by the legislature in 1850 gave Hawaii a contract labor system that would exist throughout the latter half of the century. The Royal Hawaii Agricultural Society, a group of farmers, planters, businessmen and government officials, brought the first 300 Chinese laborers to the islands in 1851 and 1852 to serve under five-year labor contracts. Other groups would soon follow from Japan and Portugal, and in the early 1900s they would come from Puerto Rico, Korea and the Philippines.
Little did the sugar and pineapple plantation owners know that when they were allowed to employ foreign laborers, the ethnic make-up of the islands and its culture would be forever changed. By setting up plantation camps according to ethnic groupings, they unwittingly preserved the different cultures, laying the foundation for a future multi-ethnic society.
Modern Hawaii has often been referred to as the "Melting Pot of the Pacific" as the children of immigrants and subsequent generations of immigrants have harmoniously made their home in the islands. Through the years, each group has taken their distinct talents from the plantation fields to the forefront of Hawaii's evolution to a modern society. Descendents of these foreign immigrant groups today make their contributions among the ranks of entrepreneurs in businesses and banking, in government and health care, in the travel and hospitality industries, and many other areas of island enterprise.
In addition, each ethnic group also has gifted the islands with the color and pagentry of their cultural observances, traditional attire, music and dance. It is not unusual to see multi-ethnic communities enjoying cultural traditions outside of their own, such as the Chinese lion dance to celebrate Chinese New Year in February or the Japanese Obon Festival held in the summer to honor departed ancestors.
The term "Melting Pot" has been debated in recent years with some calling it an inaccurate description of the island culture. For it is not so much a merging of the different cultures into a single identity that is the hallmark of island culture as it is an environment in which all cultures are acknowledged and appreciated for their unique contributions to the whole.
