Etymology
The State of Hawaii derives its name from the name of its largest island, . A common explanation of the name of is that it was named for , a figure from Hawaiian oral tradition. He is said to have discovered the islands when they were first settled. The Hawaiian language word is very similar to Proto-Polynesian ''Sawaiki'', with the reconstructed meaning "homeland." Cognates of are found in other Polynesian languages, including Māori (), Rarotongan () and Samoan (). According to linguists Pukui and Elbert, "elsewhere in Polynesia, or a cognate is the name of the underworld or of the ancestral home, but in Hawaii, the name has no meaning".Spelling of state name
In 1978, Hawaiian was added to the Constitution of the State of Hawaii as an official state language alongside English. The title of the state constitution is ''The Constitution of the State of Hawaii''. ArticleXV, Section1 of the Constitution uses ''The State of Hawaii''. Diacritics were not used because the document, drafted in 1949, predates the use of the and the in modern Hawaiian orthography. The exact spelling of the state's name in the Hawaiian language is . In the Hawaii Admission Act that granted Hawaiian statehood, the federal government used ''Hawaii'' as the state name. However, most official state government publications, departments, and office titles use ''Hawaii'', including the Governor of Hawaii, the Hawaii State Legislature, the Hawaii State Judiciary, the University of Hawaii, the Hawaiʻi State Seal, the Flag of Hawaiʻi, and the Hawaii Board on Geographic Names. The Hawaii Tourism Authority's official policy is to "recognize the importance of using these markings to preserve the indigenous language and culture of Hawaii and use them in all forms of communications."Geography and environment
There are eight main Hawaiian islands. Seven are inhabited, but only six are open to tourists and locals. Niihau is privately managed by brothers Bruce and Keith Robinson; access is restricted to those who have their permission. This island is also home to native Hawaiians. Access to uninhabited Kahoʻolawe island is also restricted and anyone who enters without permission will be arrested. This island may also be dangerous since it was a military base during the world wars and could still have unexploded ordnance.Topography
Geology
The Hawaiian islands were formed by volcanic activity initiated at an undersea magma source called the Hawaii hotspot. The process is continuing to build islands; the tectonic plate beneath much of the Pacific Ocean continually moves northwest and the hotspot remains stationary, slowly creating new volcanoes. Because of the hotspot's location, all active land volcanoes are on the southern half of Hawaii Island. The newest volcano, Kamaʻehuakanaloa (formerly Lōihi), is south of the coast of Hawaii Island. The last volcanic eruption outside Hawaii Island occurred at on Maui before the late 18thcentury, possibly hundreds of years earlier. In 1790, Kīlauea exploded; it is the deadliest eruption known to have occurred in the modern era in what is now the United States. Up to 5,405 warriors and their families marching on Kīlauea were killed by the eruption. Volcanic activity and subsequent erosion have created impressive geological features. Hawaii Island has the second-highest point among the world's islands. On the volcanoes' flanks, slope instability has generated damaging earthquakes and related tsunamis, particularly in 1868 and 1975. Catastrophic debris avalanches on the ocean island volcanoes' submerged flanks have created steep cliffs. erupted in May 2018, opening 22 fissure vents on its eastern rift zone. The Leilani Estates and Lanipuna Gardens are within this territory. The eruption destroyed at least 36 buildings and this, coupled with the lava flows and the sulfur dioxide fumes, necessitated the evacuation of more than 2,000 inhabitants from their neighborhoods.Flora and fauna
Terrestrial ecology
The archipelago's extant main islands have been above the surface of the ocean for less than 10million years, a fraction of the time biological colonization and evolution have occurred there. The islands are well known for the environmental diversity that occurs on high mountains within a trade winds field. Native Hawaiians developed complex horticultural practices to utilize the surrounding ecosystem for agriculture. Cultural practices developed to enshrine values of environmental stewardship and reciprocity with the natural world, resulting in widespread biodiversity and intricate social and environmental relationships that persist to this day. On a single island, the climate around the coasts can range from dry tropical (less than annual rainfall) to wet tropical; on the slopes, environments range from tropical rainforest (more than per year), through a temperate climate, to alpine conditions with a cold, dry climate. The rainy climate impacts soil development, which largely determines ground permeability, affecting the distribution of streams and wetlands.Protected areas
Several areas in Hawaii are under the National Park Service's protection. Hawaii has two national parks: Haleakalā National Park, near Kula on Maui, which features the dormant volcano Haleakalā that formed east Maui; and Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, in the southeast region of Hawaii Island, which includes the active volcano Kīlauea and its rift zones. There are three national historical parks: Kalaupapa National Historical Park in Kalaupapa, Molokai, the site of a former leper colony; Kaloko-Honokōhau National Historical Park in Kailua-Kona on Hawaii Island; and Puuhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park, an ancient place of refuge on Hawaii Island's west coast. Other areas under the National Park Service's control include Ala Kahakai National Historic Trail on Hawaii Island and the USS ''Arizona'' Memorial at Pearl Harbor on Oahu. President George W. Bush proclaimed the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument on June 15, 2006. The monument covers roughly of reefs, atolls, and shallow and deep sea out to offshore in the Pacific Ocean—an area larger than all the national parks in the U.S. combined.Climate
Environmental issues
Hawaii has a decades-long history of hosting more military space for the United States than any other territory or state. This record of military activity has taken a sharp toll on the environmental health of the Hawaiian archipelago, degrading its beaches and soil, and making some places entirely unsafe due to unexploded ordnance. According to scholar Winona LaDuke: "The vast militarization of Hawaii has profoundly damaged the land. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, there are more federal hazardous waste sites in Hawaii – 31 – than in any other U.S. state." Hawaii State Representative Roy Takumi writes in "Challenging U.S. Militarism in Hawaii and Okinawa" that these military bases and hazardous waste sites have meant "the confiscation of large tracts of land from native peoples" and quotes late Hawaiian activist George Helm as asking: "What is national defense when what is being destroyed is the very thing the military is entrusted to defend, the sacred land of Hawaii?" Contemporary Indigenous Hawaiians are still protesting the occupation of their homelands and environmental degradation due to increased militarization in the wake of 9/11. After the rise of sugarcane plantations in the mid 19th century, island ecology changed dramatically. Plantations require massive quantities of water, and European and American plantation owners transformed the land in order to access it, primarily by building tunnels to divert water from the mountains to the plantations, constructing reservoirs, and digging wells. These changes have made lasting impacts on the land and continue to contribute to resource scarcity for Native Hawaiians today. According to Stanford scientist and scholar Sibyl Diver, Indigenous Hawaiians engage in a reciprocal relationship with the land, "based on principles of mutual caretaking, reciprocity and sharing". This relationship ensures the longevity, sustainability, and natural cycles of growth and decay, as well as cultivating a sense of respect for the land and humility towards one's place in an ecosystem. The tourism industry's ongoing expansion and its pressure on local systems of ecology, cultural tradition and infrastructure is creating a conflict between economic and environmental health. In 2020, the Center for Biological Diversity reported on the plastic pollution of Hawaii's Kamilo beach, citing "massive piles of plastic waste". Invasive species are spreading, and chemical and pathogenic runoff is contaminating groundwater and coastal waters.History
Hawaii is one of two U.S. states, along with Texas, that were internationally recognized sovereign nations before becoming U.S. states. The Kingdom of Hawaii was sovereign from 1810 until 1893, when resident American and European capitalists and landholders overthrew the monarchy. Hawaii was an independent republic from 1894 until August 12, 1898, when it officially became a U.S. territory. Hawaii was admitted as a U.S. state on August 21, 1959.First human settlement – Ancient Hawaii (1000–1778)
The date of the human discovery and habitation of the Hawaiian Islands is the subject of academic debate. Early archaeological studies suggested that Polynesian explorers from the Marquesas Islands or Society Islands may have arrived as early as the 3rd century CE. Some archaeologists and historians think it was a later wave of immigrants from Tahiti around 1100 CE who introduced a new line of high chiefs, the kapu system, the practice of human sacrifice, and the building of '' heiau''. This later immigration is detailed in Hawaiian mythology (''moolelo'') about Paao. Other authors say there is no archaeological or linguistic evidence of a later influx of Tahitian settlers and that Paao must be regarded as a myth. More recent archaeological studies further suggest that the first settlement of Hawaii was not until around 900–1200 CE. The islands' history is marked by a slow, steady growth in population and the size of the chiefdoms, which grew to encompass whole islands. Local chiefs, called alii, ruled their settlements, and launched wars to extend their influence and defend their communities from predatory rivals. Ancient Hawaii was a caste-based society, much like that of Hindus in India. Population growth was facilitated by ecological and agricultural practices that combined upland agriculture (''manuka''), ocean fishing (''makai''), fishponds and gardening systems. These systems were upheld by spiritual and religious beliefs, like the ''lokahi'', that linked cultural continuity with the health of the natural world. According to Hawaiian scholar Mililani Trask, the ''lokahi'' symbolizes the "greatest of the traditions, values, and practices of our people ... There are three points in the triangle—the Creator, ''Akua''; the peoples of the earth, ''Kanaka Maoli''; and the land, the ''aina''. These three things all have a reciprocal relationship."First recorded contact
In January 1778, British Captain James Cook encountered the Hawaiian Islands serendipitously while crossing the Pacific during his third voyage of exploration. This marked the first documented contact by a European explorer with Hawaii. Cook named the archipelago "the Sandwich Islands" in honor of his sponsor John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich. Cook returned to the Hawaiian Islands in 1779 to resupply and over-winter, anchoring in Kealakakua off Hawaii Island for one month. Relations with the local people were peaceful then deteriorated and Cook was among those killed when violence broke out between the British and local Hawaiians. After Cook, Hawaii was not visited by any foreign ships for seven years but, after 1786, visits became increasingly frequent. At the end of the eighteenth century, the maritime fur trade developed between the northwest coast of North America and Asia bringing the ships of many nations to the North Pacific Ocean. The Hawaiian islands became established as a convenient source of supplies and destination for overwintering not only for fur traders but also ships engaged in general cross-Pacific commerce. Historian Ralph Kuykendall has described the impact of these foreign visitors on the hitherto isolated Hawaiian Islands as an “invasion” which “little by little overwhelmed the old culture of the islands”. Over the decades following the first contact, the foreign resident population slowly grew; foreigners imported iron tools, manufactured items, and household utensils; they also introduced firearms, alcohol, tobacco, non-native plants, and - inadvertently - insects previously unknown to the islands such as mosquitos and scorpions.Native Hawaiians were vulnerable to Eurasian diseases for which they had less resistance. Forty years after Cook's arrival, it is estimated that the native population had declined by half and continued to decline throughout the 19th century. During the 1850s, measles killed a fifth of Hawaii's people.Kingdom of Hawaii
House of Kamehameha
1887 Constitution and overthrow preparations
In 1887, Kalākaua was forced to sign the 1887 Constitution of the Kingdom of Hawaii. Drafted by white businessmen and lawyers, the document stripped the king of much of his authority. It established a property qualification for voting that effectively disenfranchised most Hawaiians and immigrant laborers and favored the wealthier, white elite. Resident whites were allowed to vote but resident Asians were not. As the 1887 Constitution was signed under threat of violence, it is known as the Bayonet Constitution. King Kalākaua, reduced to a figurehead, reigned until his death in 1891. His sister, Queen Liliuokalani, succeeded him; she was the last monarch of Hawaii. In 1893, Liliuokalani announced plans for a new constitution to proclaim herself an absolute monarch. On January 14, 1893, a group of mostly Euro-American business leaders and residents formed the Committee of Safety to stage a coup d'état against the kingdom and seek annexation by the United States. U.S. Government Minister John L. Stevens, responding to a request from the Committee of Safety, summoned a company of U.S. Marines. The queen's soldiers did not resist. According to historian William Russ, the monarchy was unable to protect itself. In ''Hawaiian Autonomy'', Liliuokalani states:If we did not by force resist their final outrage, it was because we could not do so without striking at the military force of the United States. Whatever constraint the executive of this great country may be under to recognize the present government at Honolulu has been forced upon it by no act of ours, but by the unlawful acts of its own agents. Attempts to repudiate those acts are vain.In a message to Sanford B. Dole, Liliuokalani states:
Now to avoid any collision of armed forces and perhaps the loss of life, I do under this protest, and impelled by said force, yield my authority until such time as the Government of the United States shall, upon the facts being presented to it, undo the action of its representatives and reinstate me in the authority which I claim as the constitutional sovereign of the Hawaiian Islands.
Overthrow of 1893 – Republic of Hawaii (1894–1898)
The treason trials of 1892 brought together the main players in the 1893 overthrow. American Minister John L. Stevens voiced support for Native Hawaiian revolutionaries; William R. Castle, a Committee of Safety member, served as a defense counsel in the treason trials; Alfred Stedman Hartwell, the 1893 annexation commissioner, led the defense effort; and Sanford B. Dole ruled as a supreme court justice against acts of conspiracy and treason. On January 17, 1893, a small group of sugar and pineapple-growing businessmen, aided by the American minister to Hawaii and backed by heavily armed U.S. soldiers and marines, deposed Queen Liliuokalani and installed a provisional government composed of members of the Committee of Safety. According to scholar Lydia Kualapai and Hawaii State Representative Roy Takumi, this committee was formed against the will of Indigenous Hawaiian voters, who constituted the majority of voters at the time, and consisted of "thirteen white men" according to scholar J Kehaulani Kauanui. The United States Minister to the Kingdom of Hawaii ( John L. Stevens) conspired with U.S. citizens to overthrow the monarchy. After the overthrow, Sanford B. Dole, a citizen of Hawaii and cousin to James Dole, owner of Hawaiian Fruit Company, a company that benefited from the annexation of Hawaii, became president of the republic when the Provisional Government of Hawaii ended on July 4, 1894. Controversy ensued in the following years as the queen tried to regain her throne. Scholar Lydia Kualapai writes that Liliuokalani had "yielded under protest not to the counterfeit Provisional Government of Hawaii but to the superior force of the United States of America" and wrote letters of protest to the president requesting a recognizance of allyship and a reinstatement of her sovereignty against the recent actions of the Provisional Government of Hawaii. Following the January 1893 coup that deposed Liliuokalani, many royalists were preparing to overthrow the white-led Republic of Hawaii oligarchy. Hundreds of rifles were covertly shipped to Hawaii and hidden in caves nearby. As armed troops came and went, a Republic of Hawaii patrol discovered the rebel group. On January 6, 1895, gunfire began on both sides and later the rebels were surrounded and captured. Over the next 10 days several skirmishes occurred, until the last armed opposition surrendered or were captured. The Republic of Hawaii took 123 troops into custody as prisoners of war. The mass arrest of nearly 300 more men and women, including Queen Liliuokalani, as political prisoners was intended to incapacitate the political resistance against the ruling oligarchy. In March 1895, a military tribunal convicted 170 prisoners of treason and sentenced six troops to be "hung by the neck" until dead, according to historian Ronald Williams Jr. The other prisoners were variously sentenced to from five to thirty-five years' imprisonment at hard labor, while those convicted of lesser charges received sentences from six months' to six years' imprisonment at hard labor. The queen was sentenced to five years in prison, but spent eight months under house arrest until she was released on parole. The total number of arrests related to the 1895 Kaua Kūloko was 406 people on a summary list of statistics, published by the government of the Republic of Hawaii. The administration of President Grover Cleveland commissioned the Blount Report, which concluded that the removal of Liliuokalani had been illegal. Commissioner Blount found the U.S. and its minister guilty on all counts including the overthrow, the landing of the marines, and the recognition of the provisional government. In a message to Congress, Cleveland wrote:And finally, but for the lawless occupation of Honolulu under false pretexts by the United States forces, and but for Minister Stevens' recognition of the provisional government when the United States forces were its sole support and constituted its only military strength, the Queen and her Government would never have yielded to the provisional government, even for a time and for the sole purpose of submitting her case to the enlightened justice of the United States. By an act of war, committed with the participation of a diplomatic representative of the United States and without authority of Congress, the Government of a feeble but friendly and confiding people has been overthrown. A substantial wrong has thus been done which a due regard for our national character as well as the rights of the injured people requires we should endeavor to repair. The provisional government has not assumed a republican or other constitutional form, but has remained a mere executive council or oligarchy, set up without the assent of the people. It has not sought to find a permanent basis of popular support and has given no evidence of an intention to do so.The U.S. government first demanded that Queen Liliuokalani be reinstated, but the Provisional Government refused. On December 23, 1893, the response from the Provisional Government of Hawaii, authored by President Sanford B. Dole, was received by Cleveland's representative Minister Albert S. Willis and emphasized that the Provisional Government of Hawaii "unhesitatingly" rejected the demand from the Cleveland Administration. Congress conducted an independent investigation, and on February 26, 1894, submitted the Morgan Report, which found all parties, including Minister Stevens—with the exception of the queen—"not guilty" and not responsible for the coup. Partisans on both sides of the debate questioned the accuracy and impartiality of both the Blount and Morgan reports over the events of 1893. In 1993, Congress passed a joint Apology Resolution regarding the overthrow; it was signed by President Bill Clinton. The resolution apologized and said that the overthrow was illegal in the following phrase: "The Congress—on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the illegal overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaii on January 17, 1893, acknowledges the historical significance of this event which resulted in the suppression of the inherent sovereignty of the Native Hawaiian people." The Apology Resolution also "acknowledges that the overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaii occurred with the active participation of agents and citizens of the United States and further acknowledges that the Native Hawaiian people never directly relinquished to the United States their claims to their inherent sovereignty as a people over their national lands, either through the Kingdom of Hawaii or through a plebiscite or referendum".
Annexation – Territory of Hawaii (1898–1959)
Political changes of 1954 – State of Hawaii (1959–present)
In the 1950s, the plantation owners' power was broken by the descendants of immigrant laborers, who were born in Hawaii and were U.S. citizens. They voted against the Hawaii Republican Party, strongly supported by plantation owners. The new majority voted for the Democratic Party of Hawaii, which dominated territorial and state politics for more than 40 years. Eager to gain full representation in Congress and the Electoral College, residents actively campaigned for statehood. In Washington, there was talk that Hawaii would be a Republican Party stronghold. As a result, the admission of Hawaii was matched with the admission of Alaska, which was seen as a Democratic Party stronghold. These predictions proved inaccurate; as of 2017, Hawaii almost always votes Democratic, while Alaska typically votes Republican. During the Cold War, Hawaii became an important site for U.S. cultural diplomacy, military training, research, and as a staging ground for the U.S. war in Vietnam. In March 1959, Congress passed the Hawaii Admissions Act, which U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed into law. The act excluded Palmyra Atoll from statehood; it had been part of the Kingdom and Territory of Hawaii. On June 27, 1959, a referendum asked residents of Hawaii to vote on the statehood bill; 94.3% voted in favor of statehood and 5.7% opposed it. The referendum asked voters to choose between accepting the Act and remaining a U.S. territory. The United Nations' Special Committee on Decolonization later removed Hawaii from its list of non-self-governing territories. After attaining statehood, Hawaii quickly modernized through construction and a rapidly growing tourism economy. Later, state programs promoted Hawaiian culture. The Hawaii State Constitutional Convention of 1978 created institutions such as the Office of Hawaiian Affairs to promote indigenous language and culture.Legacy of annexation on Hawaiian land
In 1897, over 21,000 Natives, representing the overwhelming majority of adult Hawaiians, signed anti-annexation petitions in one of the first examples of protest against the overthrow of Queen Liliuokalani's government. Nearly 100 years later, in 1993, 17,000 Hawaiians marched to demand access and control over Hawaiian trust lands and as part of the modern Hawaiian sovereignty movement. Hawaiian trust land ownership and use is still widely contested as a consequence of annexation. According to scholar Winona LaDuke, as of 2015, 95% of Hawaii's land was owned or controlled by just 82 landholders, including over 50% by federal and state governments, as well as the established sugar and pineapple companies. The Thirty Meter Telescope is planned to be built on Hawaiian trust land, but has faced resistance as the projectDemographics
Population
Ancestry
Languages
Hawaiian
The Hawaiian language has about 2,000 native speakers, about 0.15% of the total population. According to theHawaiian Pidgin
Hawaiian Pidgin, officially known as Hawaiʻi Creole English (HCE), is a creole language that emerged in Hawaiʻi during the 19th century as a means of communication among diverse groups working on sugarcane plantations. Its lexicon is primarily derived from English, with significant contributions from Hawaiian, Chinese, Japanese, Portuguese, Ilocano, and Tagalog. The development of Hawaiian Pidgin began with Pidgin Hawaiian, an earlier pidgin that formed in the 1790s during initial contact between Native Hawaiians and foreigners. As plantation laborers from various countries arrived, a new pidgin based on English evolved to facilitate communication among workers and supervisors. By the early 20th century, children of these plantation workers began acquiring Hawaiian Pidgin as their first language, leading to its creolization. This transition marked the emergence of HCE as a fully developed creole language. HCE incorporates Hawaiian words, especially in place names and terms for local flora and fauna. For instance, the Hawaiian term for tuna, "ahi," is commonly used in HCE. Additionally, certain English words have adapted meanings; "aunty" and "uncle" are used to address any respected elder, regardless of familial relation. Some expressions from HCE have permeated other communities, particularly through surfing culture. Terms like "brah" (brother) and "da kine" (a versatile placeholder term) have gained recognition beyond Hawaiʻi. In 2015, the U.S. Census Bureau recognized Hawaiian Pidgin as an official language in Hawaiʻi, reflecting its widespread use among residents. Despite this recognition, debates continue about its role in education and its impact on learningHawaiʻi Sign Language
Hawaiʻi Sign Language, a sign language for the Deaf based on the Hawaiian language, has been in use in the islands since the early 1800s. It is dwindling in numbers due to American Sign Language supplanting HSL through schooling and various other domains.Religion
Hawaii is among the most religiously diverse states in the U.S., with one in ten residents practicing a non-Christian faith. Roughly one-quarter to half the population identify as unaffiliated and nonreligious, making Hawaii one of the most secular states as well. Christianity remains the majority religion, represented mainly by variousBirth data
''Note: Births in this table do not add up, because Hispanic peoples are counted both by their ethnicity and by their race, giving a higher overall number.'' :1) Until 2016, data for births of Asian origin, included also births of the Pacific Islander group. :2) Since 2016, data for births of White Hispanic origin are not collected, but included in one ''Hispanic'' group; persons of Hispanic origin may be of any race.LGBTQ people
Hawaii has had a long history of LGBTQIA+ identities. ("in the middle") were a precolonial third gender with traditional spiritual and social roles, widely respected as healers. Homosexual relationships known as '' aikāne'' were widespread and normal in ancient Hawaiian society. Among men, ''aikāne'' relationships often began as teens and continued throughout their adult lives, even if they also maintained heterosexual partners. While ''aikāne'' usually refers to male homosexuality, some stories also refer to women, implying that women may have been involved in ''aikāne'' relationships as well. Journals written by Captain Cook's crew record that many '' aliʻi'' (hereditary nobles) also engaged in ''aikāne'' relationships, and Kamehameha the Great, the founder and first ruler of the Kingdom of Hawaii, was also known to participate. Cook's second lieutenant and co-astronomer James King observed that "all the chiefs had them", and recounts that Cook was actually asked by one chief to leave King behind, considering the role a great honor. Hawaiian scholar Lilikalā Kameʻeleihiwa notes that ''aikāne'' served a practical purpose of building mutual trust and cohesion; "If you didn't sleep with a man, how could you trust him when you went into battle? How would you know if he was going to be the warrior that would protect you at all costs, if he wasn't your lover?" As Western colonial influences intensified in the late 19th and early 20th century, the word ''aikāne'' was expurgated of its original sexual meaning, and in print simply meant "friend". Nonetheless, in Hawaiian language publications its metaphorical meaning can still mean either "friend" or "lover" without stigmatization. A 2012 Gallup poll found that Hawaii had the largest proportion of LGBTQIA+ adults in the U.S., at 5.1%, an estimated 53,966 individuals. The number of same-sex couple households in 2010 was 3,239, representing a 35.5% increase from a decade earlier. In 2013, Hawaii became the fifteenth U.S. state to legalize same-sex marriage; this reportedly boosted tourism by $217million.Economy
The history of Hawaii's economy can be traced through a succession of dominant industries: sandalwood, whaling, sugarcane, pineapple, the military, tourism and education. By the 1840s, sugar plantations had gained a strong foothold in the Hawaiian economy, due to a high demand of sugar in the United States and rapid transport via steamships. Sugarcane plantations were tightly controlled by American missionary families and businessmen known as " the Big Five", who monopolized control of the sugar industry's profits. By the time Hawaiian annexation was being considered in 1898, sugarcane producers turned to cultivating tropical fruits like pineapple, which became the principal export for Hawaiʻi's plantation economy. Since statehood in 1959, tourism has been the largest industry, contributing 24.3% of the gross state product (GSP) in 1997, despite efforts to diversify. The state's gross output for 2003 was billion; per capita income for Hawaii residents in 2014 was . Hawaiian exports include food and clothing. These industries play a small role in the Hawaiian economy, due to the shipping distance to viable markets, such as the West Coast of the United States. The state's food exports include coffee, macadamia nuts, pineapple, livestock, sugarcane and honey. By weight, honey bees may be the state's most valuable export. According to the Hawaii Agricultural Statistics Service, agricultural sales were million from diversified agriculture, million from pineapple, and million from sugarcane. Hawaii's relatively consistent climate has attracted the seed industry, which is able to test three generations of crops per year on the islands, compared with one or two on the mainland. Seeds yielded million in 2012, supporting 1,400 workers. , the state's unemployment rate was 3.2%. In 2009, the United States military spent billion in Hawaii, accounting for 18% of spending in the state for that year. 75,000 United States Department of Defense personnel live in Hawaii. According to a 2013 study by Phoenix Marketing International, Hawaii at that time had the fourth-largest number of millionaires per capita in the United States, with a ratio of 7.2%.Taxation
Tax is collected by the Hawaii Department of Taxation. Most government revenue comes from personal income taxes and a general excise tax (GET) levied primarily on businesses; there is no statewide tax on sales, personal property, or stock transfers, while the effective property tax rate is among the lowest in the country. The high rate of tourism means that millions of visitors generate public revenue through GET and the hotel room tax. However, Hawaii residents generally pay among the most state taxes per person in the U.S. The Tax Foundation of Hawaii considers the state's tax burden too high, claiming that it contributes to higher prices and the perception of an unfriendly business climate. The nonprofit Tax Foundation ranks Hawaii third in income tax burden and second in its overall tax burden, though notes that a significant portion of taxes are borne by tourists. Former State Senator Sam Slom attributed Hawaii's comparatively high tax rate to the fact that the state government is responsible for education, health care, and social services that are usually handled at a county or municipal level in most other states.Cost of living
The cost of living in Hawaii, specifically Honolulu, is high compared to that of most major U.S. cities, although it is 6.7% lower than in New York City and 3.6% lower than in San Francisco. These numbers may not take into account some costs, such as increased travel costs for flights, additional shipping fees, and the loss of promotional participation opportunities for customers outside the contiguous U.S. While some online stores offer free shipping on orders to Hawaii, many merchants exclude Hawaii, Alaska, Puerto Rico and certain other U.S. territories.Culture
The aboriginal culture of Hawaii is Polynesian. Hawaii represents the northernmost extension of the vast Polynesian Triangle of the south and central Pacific Ocean. While traditional Hawaiian culture remains as vestiges in modern Hawaiian society, there are re-enactments of the ceremonies and traditions throughout the islands. Some of these cultural influences, including the popularity (in greatly modified form) of '' lūau'' and '' hula'', are strong enough to affect the wider United States.Cuisine
The cuisine of Hawaii is a fusion of many foods brought by immigrants to the Hawaiian Islands, including the earliest Polynesians and Native Hawaiian cuisine, and American, Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, Korean, Polynesian, Puerto Rican, and Portuguese origins. Plant and animal food sources are imported from around the world for agricultural use in Hawaii. '' Poi'', a starch made by pounding taro, is one of the traditional foods of the islands. Many local restaurants serve the ubiquitous plate lunch, which features two scoops of rice, a simplified version of American macaroni salad and a variety of toppings including hamburger patties, a fried egg, and gravy of a '' loco moco'', Japanese style '' tonkatsu'' or the traditional lūau favorites, including '' kālua'' pork and '' laulau''. '' Spam musubi'' is an example of the fusion of ethnic cuisine that developed on the islands among the mix of immigrant groups and military personnel. In the 1990s, a group of chefs developed Hawaii regional cuisine as a contemporary fusion cuisine.Customs and etiquette
Some key customs and etiquette in Hawaii are as follows: when visiting a home, it is considered good manners to bring a small gift for one's host (for example, a dessert). Thus, parties are usually in the form of potlucks. Most locals take their shoes off before entering a home. It is customary for Hawaiian families, regardless of ethnicity, to hold a luau to celebrate a child's first birthday. It is also customary at Hawaiian weddings, especially at Filipino weddings, for the bride and groom to do a money dance (also called the pandanggo). Print media and local residents recommend that one refer to residents of Hawaii who are not ethnically Hawaiian as "locals of Hawaii" or "people of Hawaii".Hawaiian mythology
Polynesian mythology
List of state parks
There are many Hawaiian state parks. *The Island of Hawaii has state parks, recreation areas, and historical parks. * Kauai has the Ahukini State Recreation Pier, six state parks, and the Russian Fort Elizabeth State Historical Park. * Maui has two state monuments, several state parks, and the Polipoli Spring State Recreation Area. Moloka'i has the Pala'au State Park. * Oahu has several state parks, a number of state recreation areas, and a number of monuments, including the Ulu Pō Heiau State Monument.Literature
The literature of Hawaii is diverse and includes authors Kiana Davenport, Lois-Ann Yamanaka, and Kaui Hart Hemmings. Hawaiian magazines include '' Hana Hou!'', '' Hawaii Business'' and '' Honolulu'', among others.Music
Sports
Due to its distance from the continental United States, team sports in Hawaii are characterised by youth, collegial and amateur teams over professional teams, although some professional teams sports teams have at one time played in the state. Notable professional teams include The Hawaiians, which played at the World Football League in 1974 and 1975; the Hawaii Islanders, a Triple-A minor league baseball team that played at the Pacific Coast League from 1961 to 1987; and Team Hawaii, a North American Soccer League team that played in 1977. Notable college sports events in Hawaii include the Maui Invitational Tournament, Diamond Head Classic (basketball) and Hawaii Bowl (football). The only NCAA Division I team in Hawaii is the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors and Rainbow Wahine, which competes at the Big West Conference (major sports), Mountain West Conference (football) and Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (minor sports). There are three teams in NCAA Division II: Chaminade Silverswords, Hawaii Pacific Sharks and Hawaii-Hilo Vulcans, all of which compete at the Pacific West Conference. Surfing has been a central part of Polynesian culture for centuries. Since the late 19th century, Hawaii has become a major site for surfists from around the world. Notable competitions include the Triple Crown of Surfing and The Eddie. Likewise, Hawaii has produced elite-level swimmers, including five-time Olympic medalist Duke Kahanamoku and Buster Crabbe, who set 16 swimming world records. Hawaii has hosted the Sony Open in Hawaii golf tournament since 1965, the Tournament of Champions golf tournament since 1999, the Lotte Championship golf tournament since 2012, the Honolulu Marathon since 1973, the Ironman World Championship triathlon race since 1978, the Ultraman triathlon since 1983, the National Football League's Pro Bowl from 1980 to 2016, the 2000 FINA World Open Water Swimming Championships, and the 2008 Pan-Pacific Championship and 2012 Hawaiian Islands Invitational soccer tournaments. Hawaii has produced a number of notable Mixed Martial Arts fighters, such as former UFC Lightweight Champion and UFC Welterweight Champion B.J. Penn, and former UFC Featherweight Champion Max Holloway. Other notable Hawaiian Martial Artists include Travis Browne, K. J. Noons, Brad Tavares and Wesley Correira. Hawaiians have found success in the world of sumo wrestling. Takamiyama Daigorō was the first foreigner to ever win a sumo title in Japan, while his protege Akebono Tarō became a top-level sumo wrestler in Japan during the 1990s before transitioning into a successful professional wrestling career in the 2000s. Akebono was the first foreign-born Sumo to reach Yokozuna in history and helped fuel a boom in interest in Sumo during his career.Tourism
Tourism is an important part of the Hawaiian economy as it represents a quarter of the economy. According to the Hawaii Tourism: 2019 Annual Visitor Research Report, a total of 10,386,673 visitors arrived in 2019 which increased 5% from the previous year, with expenditures of almost $18 billion. In 2019, tourism provided over 216,000 jobs statewide and contributed more than $2 billion in tax revenue. Due to mild year-round weather, tourist travel is popular throughout the year. Tourists across the globe visited Hawaii in 2019 with over 1 million tourists from the U.S. East, almost 2 million Japanese tourists, and almost 500,000 Canadian tourists. It was with statehood in 1959 that the Hawaii tourism industry began to grow. According to Hawaiian scholar Haunani-Kay Trask, tourism in Hawaii has led to the commodification and exploitation of Hawaiian culture resulting in insidious forms of "cultural prostitution". Hawaii has been used to fuel ideas of escapism yet tourism in Hawaii ignores the harm Kanaka and locals experience. Cultural traditions such as the hula have been made "ornamental ... a form of exotica" for tourists as a way for large corporations and land owners to gain profit over the exploitation of Hawaiian people and culture. Tourism in Hawaii has been considered as an escape from reality resulting in the dismissal of violence faced by Native Hawaiians and locals living on the land. According to scholar Winona LaDuke, native Hawaiians have been forced to gather "shrimp and fish from ponds sitting on resort property". Tourism has also had damaging effects on the environment such as water shortages, overcrowding, sea level rising, elevated sea surface temperatures and micro plastics on beaches. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, tourism in Hawaii came to a halt, which allowed the land, water, and animals to began to heal. Fish like the baby akule and big ulua have returned after years of not being around the bay. The coral reefs, fish, water growth, and limu (algae) growth was able to flourish without the heavy toll of tourism. There has been pushback against tourism by Native Hawaiians, urging people not to visit the islands. A survey by the Hawaii Tourism Authority indicated over two-thirds of Hawaiians did not want tourists to return to Hawaii. Tourism had "become extractive and hurtful, with tourists coming here and taking, taking, taking, taking, without any reciprocation with locals". Hawaii hosts numerous cultural events. The annualHealth
, Hawaii's health care system insures 92% of residents. Under the state's plan, businesses are required to provide insurance to employees who work more than twenty hours per week. Heavy regulation of insurance companies helps reduce the cost to employers. Due in part to heavy emphasis on preventive care, Hawaiians require hospital treatment less frequently than the rest of the United States, while total health care expenses measured as a percentage of state GDP are substantially lower. Proponents of universal health care elsewhere in the U.S. sometimes use Hawaii as a model for proposed federal and state health care plans.Education
Public schools
Hawaii has the only school system within the U.S. that is unified statewide. Policy decisions are made by the fourteen-member state Board of Education, which sets policy and hires the superintendent of schools, who oversees the Hawaii Department of Education. The Department of Education is divided into seven districts; four on Oahu and one for each of the other three counties. Public elementary, middle and high school test scores in Hawaii are below national averages on tests mandated under the No Child Left Behind Act. The Hawaii Board of Education requires all eligible students to take these tests and report all student test scores. This may have unbalanced the results that reported in August 2005 that of 282 schools across the state, 185 failed to reach federal minimum performance standards in mathematics and reading. The ACT college placement tests show that in 2005, seniors scored slightly above the national average (21.9 compared with 20.9), but in the widely accepted SAT examinations, Hawaii's college-bound seniors tend to score below the national average in all categories except mathematics. The first native controlled public charter school was the Kanu O Ka Aina New Century Charter School.Private schools
Hawaii has the highest rates of private school attendance in the nation. During the 2011–2012 school year, Hawaii public and charter schools had an enrollment of 181,213, while private schools had 37,695. Private schools educated over 17% of students in Hawaii that school year, nearly three times the approximate national average of 6%. According to Alia Wong of '' Honolulu Civil Beat'', this is due to private schools being relatively inexpensive compared to ones on the mainland as well as the overall reputations of private schools. It has four of the largest independent schools; Iolani School, Kamehameha Schools, Mid-Pacific Institute and Punahou School. Pacific Buddhist Academy, the second Buddhist high school in the U.S. and first such school in Hawaii, was founded in 2003. Independent schools can select their students, while most public schools of HIDOE are open to all students in their attendance zones. The Kamehameha Schools are the only schools in the U.S. that openly grant admission to students based on ancestry; collectively, they are one of the wealthiest schools in the United States, if not the world, having over eleven billion US dollars in estate assets. In 2005, Kamehameha enrolled 5,398 students, 8.4% of the Native Hawaiian children in the state.Colleges and universities
The largest institution of higher learning in Hawaii is the University of Hawaiʻi System, which consists of the research university at University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, Mānoa, two comprehensive campuses at University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo, Hilo and University of Hawaiʻi – West Oʻahu, West Oahu, and seven community colleges. Private universities include Brigham Young University–Hawaii, Chaminade University of Honolulu, Hawaii Pacific University, and Wayland Baptist University. Saint Stephen Diocesan Seminary, Honolulu, Saint Stephen Diocesan Center is a seminary of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Honolulu. Kona hosts the University of the Nations, which is not an educational accreditation, accredited university.Transportation
Rail
At one time Hawaii had a network of railroads on each of the larger islands that transported farm commodities and passengers. Most were narrow gauge systems but there were some gauge on some of the smaller islands. The standard gauge in the U.S. is . By far the largest railroad was the Oahu Railway and Land Company (OR&L) that ran lines from Honolulu across the western and northern part of Oahu. The OR&L was important for moving troops and goods during World War II. Traffic on this line was busy enough for signals to be used to facilitate movement of trains and to require wigwag (railroad), wigwag signals at some railroad crossings for the protection of motorists. The main line was officially abandoned in 1947, although part of it was bought by the U.S. Navy and operated until 1970. of track remain; preservationists occasionally run trains over a portion of this line. Skyline (Honolulu), Skyline is an elevated passenger rail line operated by Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation, HART, a semi-autonomous agency of the Honolulu County, Hawaii, City and County of Honolulu. It was built with the intention to relieve highway congestion. A portion of Skyline opened for service in 2023, with the next phase expected to open in October 2025, and the final phase in 2031.Governance
Political subdivisions and local government
State government
The state government of Hawaii is modeled after the federal government with adaptations originating from the kingdom era of Hawaiian history. As codified in the Constitution of Hawaii, there are three branches of government: executive, legislative, and judicial, although the Office of Hawaiian Affairs is often referred to as the fourth branch of government as it does not fall under the other three branches. The executive branch is led by the Governor of Hawaii, who is assisted by the Lieutenant Governor of Hawaii, both of whom are elected on the same ticket. The governor is the only state public official elected statewide; all others are appointed by the governor. The lieutenant governor acts as the Secretary of State of Hawaii, Secretary of State. The governor and lieutenant governor oversee twenty agencies and departments from offices in the Hawaii State Capitol, State Capitol. The official residence of the governor is Washington Place. The legislative branch consists of the Bicameralism, bicameral Hawaii State Legislature, which is composed of the 51-member Hawaii House of Representatives led by the Speaker (politics), Speaker of the House, and the 25-member Hawaii Senate led by the President of the Senate. The Legislature meets at the Hawaii State Capitol, State Capitol. The unified judicial branch of Hawaii is the Hawaii State Judiciary. The State supreme court, state's highest court is the Supreme Court of Hawaii, which uses Aliiolani Hale, Aliiōlani Hale as its chambers.Federal government
Politics
Law enforcement
Hawaii has a statewide sheriff department under its Hawaii Department of Public Safety, Department of Public Safety that provides law enforcement protection to government buildings and Daniel K. Inouye International Airport as well as correction services to all correctional facilities owned by the state. Counties have their own respective police departments with their own jurisdictions: *Kauai County Police Department for the island of Kauai *Honolulu Police Department for Oahu *Maui County Police Department for Molokai, Maui and Lanai *Hawaii County Police Department for the Big Island Forensic services for all agencies in the state are provided by the Honolulu Police Department. In January 2022, state officials proposed legislation that would split the sheriff department from the Department of Public Safety and consolidate it with the criminal investigation division from the State of Hawaii Department of the Attorney General, Department of the Attorney General to create a new Department of Law Enforcement that would create a statewide police agency with the ability to investigate crimes.Hawaiian sovereignty movement
While Hawaii is internationally recognized as a state of the United States while also being broadly accepted as such in mainstream understanding, the Legal status of Hawaii, legality of this status has been questioned in U.S. District Court, the U.N., and other international forums. Domestically, the debate is a topic covered in the Kamehameha Schools curriculum, and in classes at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. Political organizations seeking some form of sovereignty for Hawaii have been active since the late 19th century. Generally, their focus is on self-determination and self-governance, either for Hawaii as an independent nation (in many proposals, for "Hawaiian nationals" descended from subjects of the Hawaiian Kingdom or declaring themselves as such by choice), or for people of whole or part native Hawaiian ancestry in an indigenous "''nation to nation''" relationship akin to tribal sovereignty with US federal recognition of Native Hawaiians. The pro-federal recognition Akaka Bill drew substantial opposition among Hawaiian residents in the 2000s. Opponents to the tribal approach argue it is not a legitimate path to Hawaiian nationhood; they also argue that the U.S. government should not be involved in re-establishing Hawaiian sovereignty. The Hawaiian sovereignty movement views the overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaii in 1893 as illegal, and views the subsequent Newlands Resolution, annexation of Hawaii by the United States as illegal as well; the movement seeks some form of greater autonomy for Hawaii, such as associated state, free association or independence from the United States. Some groups also advocate some form of redress from the United States for the Overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaii, 1893 overthrow of Liliuokalani, Queen Liliuokalani, and for what is described as a prolonged military occupation beginning with the 1898 annexation. The Apology Resolution passed by US Congress in 1993 is cited as a major impetus by the movement for Hawaiian sovereignty. The sovereignty movement considers Hawaii to be an illegally occupied nation.International sister relationships
* Ehime Prefecture, Ehime,See also
*Index of Hawaii-related articles *List of cemeteries in Hawaii *Outline of Hawaii *USS Hawaii, USS ''Hawaii'', two shipsReferences
Informational notes
Citations
Bibliography
*Beechert, Edward D. ''Working in Hawaii: A Labor History'' (University of Hawaii Press, 1985). * *Kuykendall, Ralph S. ''A History of Hawaii'' (Macmillan, 1926Guides
*Cooperm, Jeanne, and Natalie Schack. '' Frommer's Hawaii'' (2022External links
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