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Hawaiian Style: The Roots of the Aloha Shirt
- _13gp 8y agoPeople, please stop calling them Hawaiian shirts. Thank you.
- JoeAltmaier 8y agoOH, they're definitely Hawaiian shirts. They're not Estonian, for instance. Nor Japanese. Pure Hawaiian. There are also Hawaiian pants, and skirts etc.
- jmkb 8y agoThe article's a fun read, and indicates that the originals were a product of Chinese tailors using Japanese kimono fabric in a hybrid Filipino/European style at the request of middle-class Hawaiian school boys.
- JoeAltmaier 8y ago...and made in Hawaii. By Hawaiians. To local taste. As genuinely Hawaiian as any designer dress is the designer's product, regardless of the tailor or fabric origin.
- deleted 8y ago[deleted]
- mduncs 8y agoHawaiian is primarily used as an ethnonym, so saying the Aloha shirt is a 'Hawaiian Shirt' is implying the shirt as part of native Hawaiian culture. What you say is technically true at a certain level, people who live in Hawaii do have the demonym of 'Hawaiian', but that term is reserved for the indigenous Polynesian people of Hawaii. It would seem odd to say for someone to say they enjoy native American food as a means of expressing their like of hamburgers and french fries.
- rustler 8y agoBut it's not called a native Hawaiian shirt. Hawaiian culture didn't end in 1778.
- mduncs 8y agoHawaii post-Cook ended up losing a lot of its population, because of that and other immigration it began to lose its culture. Other culture loss came fron Westernization and Christianity (Missionaries), the Hawaiian language itself was on the decline because of suppression until a renaissance in the 1970s. The distinction of Hawaiian in reference to native people is a only made off the islands. To anyone from Hawaii or familiar with it calling it a Hawaiian shirt literally is wrong in our understanding of the word. To try and spread that understanding of Hawaiian as reference to native peoples is to spread the knowledge that Hawaii is a multiethnic place with distinct native culture alongside its American, Asian and other Polynesian influences.
- coldtea 8y ago>The distinction of Hawaiian in reference to native people is a only made off the islands. To anyone from Hawaii or familiar with it calling it a Hawaiian shirt literally is wrong in our understanding of the word. Well, 8 billion people live outside the islands. Their use of the word will prevail for an object that's available everywhere in the world.
- rustler 8y agoThat's a fine distinction, but what word would you use to describe something that's a product of Hawaii but not ethically Polynesian? Like Hawaiian pineapples, or loco moco? On the islands you could just call it "local" but on the mainland that wouldn't make any sense.
- mduncs 8y agoOne answer is undeniably clunky, "these pineapples are from Hawaii." The AP's style guide uses Hawaiian as an adjective. It is a messy thing when typical ways of speaking English conflict with nuances.
- skepticaldrunk 8y agoDoesn't that make it a uniquely Hawaiian thing? The sequence of events spurring the shirt's evolution couldn't have happened anywhere else. The article also makes a point that the cultural melting pot that is 20th century Hawaii is what enabled the creation of such a distinct garment. I think it's very Hawaiian, and should be interpreted as a celebration. Then again, I'm just a Haole with a penchant for comfy fun shirts.
- _13gp 8y agoAs a point of comparison, food dishes that came about under similar melting pot circumstances are called "local" food while dishes that have ethnic Hawaiian origins are called "Hawaiian" food.
- _13gp 8y agoThe proper name for them is stated in the article's title.
- mistermann 8y agoAloha is a subset of Hawaii is it not? Similarly, these are a subset of shirt. Ideology seems to be increasingly creeping into conversations here (not pointed at you, just saying in general).
- _13gp 8y agoHawaiian is an ethnicity. Hawaiian is used in specific contexts in Hawaii and using it to describe a specific type of shirt is not one of them. It has nothing to do with ideology and everything to do with accuracy and respect for a group of people.
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- mistermann 8y ago> Hawaiian is an ethnicity. Indeed it is: Ethnicity: noun, plural eth·nic·i·ties. - an ethnic group; a social group that shares a common and distinctive culture, religion, language, or the like. - ethnic traits, background, allegiance, or association > Hawaiian is used in specific contexts in Hawaii and using it to describe a specific type of shirt is not one of them. Is it not unique (in origin) to Hawaiian culture? > It has nothing to do with ideology and everything to do with accuracy and respect for a group of people. That you think this has anything to do with "respect" is precisely the problem I'm talking about. It's a style of shirt. Even if I didn't like the style, how in god's name does one interpret this as "not respecting" Hawaiians as a group?
- JoeAltmaier 8y agoThe Wikipedia article distinguishes between the local 'Aloha shirt' which is a dress shirt with muted floral design or native fabric pattern, and the exported 'Hawaiian shirt' which is informal wear with usually an extravagant floral design. So that makes a case for naming them differently.
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- spraak 8y agoAre you suggesting Aloha Shirt instead? Or it'd be great if you.could explain further. I do understand not saying Hawaiian Shirt, since Hawaiian carries the connotation of ethnically Hawaiian. No sane white person who's born in Hawaii would say they're Hawaiian [1], so in that way it makes sense. [1] I've lived in Hawaii most my life and this is my experience.
- _13gp 8y agoYes, Aloha shirt. Sorry for not being clear earlier, was looking at the article title when posting.
- panzagl 8y agoNothing says Officially Sanctioned Fun like Hawaiian shirt Friday...
- joejerryronnie 8y agoA previous co-worker recently took a job with one of the big consulting firms in DC. They have "jeans Fridays" but you have to pay $5.00 to participate each week.
- SketchySeaBeast 8y agoI've never found pants there were so uncomfortable I'd pay to get out of them. In fact, the dressier the pant, the more comfortable they seem to be.
- hkmurakami 8y agoDoes this go to charity?
- joejerryronnie 8y agoYes, it does go into a charity fund.
- Analemma_ 8y agoMan, having a job on the East Coast seems like a fate worse than death. You'll pry my jeans and T-shirt from my cold, dead fingers.
- toomanybeersies 8y agoIt's even better here in Australia, in summer I go to work in shorts and flip flops.
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- jitix 8y ago
- nmcfarl 8y agoArchive: http://archive.today/2018.07.11-134734/https://www.collectorsweekly.com/articles/an-interview-with-aloha-shirt-author-and-scholar-linda-arthur/ http://archive.today/2018.07.11-134734/https://www.collector...
- beamatronic 8y agoThere are different grades of Aloha type shirts. I once had a business meeting in Hawaii. There is a business casual grade for lack of a better term. Everyone at this business looked so stylish and classy yet with a tropical sort of flair. It was great!
- papa 8y agoSo true. I love Aloha shirts (I grew up on Oahu). The best thing about them is that they are multi-purpose. Need to wear something to a wedding in Hawaii? Aloha shirt with slacks. Funeral? Aloha shirt, totally acceptable. Fancy restaurant? Again, Aloha shirt. Business attire? Totally acceptable (it's really the norm for business people if you're 'dressing up'). Where else can you get away with wearing such a comfortable, fun shirt in so many different contexts.
- _13gp 8y agoWhen I tell people that only lawyers wear suits in Hawaii they don't believe me. Don't know if still going on but the legislature was pushing the courts to discourage the use of suits as well. On top of all your reasons, it's just too hot and humid year round in Hawaii to wear a suit regularly. Must be pure misery for the people who have to.
- FiatLuxDave 8y agoStill waiting for this outbreak of sanity to hit Florida. I'd love for someone in the fashion industry to capitalize on the fact that that not everyone lives in the climate of Paris and New York.
- TheGRS 8y agoI grew up in Hawaii and my Dad was a federal agent, he previously worked in DC and Philly before we moved there, he still wore aloha shirts to work because it was just the normal thing to do there. Can't help but agree with it either, its always nice. Why tie yourself down with a suit? (pun intended)
- highdesertmuse 8y agoMy husband lives and works in nothing but Reyn Spooners and jeans -- has a 40 year old "collection" (every year the company produces several new designs that are emblematic for that year). He says they're made of the original Hawaiian Fabric and are the most comfortable and certainly most long lasting -- they turn the fabric inside out so wear is just part of the look. They are beautiful classic shirts and I never get tired of seeing him in them.
- crooked-v 8y agoThanks for the brand mention. I've been looking to replace some of my worn-out aloha shirts. I really love the low-key prints.
- joejerryronnie 8y agoI was looking to pick up a couple of Reyn Spooner shirts while on the big island last month, but I realized they all had collar buttons. My mind cannot reconcile aloha shirts and collar buttons existing in the same universe so I went with Tommy Bahama instead.
- electricslpnsld 8y agoI'd like to know how Hawaiian shirts became the official attire of US Federal Air Marshals
- matt_the_bass 8y agoA few years ago I had to get some paperwork stamped returning to the US (equipment travelling on a carnet). I had to go through passport control in an area far from most travelers. While talking to the CBP agent, a motley group of 8 gregarious people can down the hall and skipped the passport control. The CBP agent I was working with said “there goes the Air Marshals”. The group was mixed gender, mixed ages, mixed build, mixed style. I would not have pegged any of them as Air Marshals. One girl had dyed punk hair and a biker jacket. One guy looked like a middle aged dad. One girl looked like a European fashion model.
- toomanybeersies 8y agoIn Fiji, they wear bula shirts, which are more or less the same (bula == aloha in Fijian). I wonder if they're a separate parallel development, or if they were introduced at some point.
- jedberg 8y agoFascinating. I have a pretty solid collection of Aloha shirts myself, but I always thought they were a mainland invention and that the Hawaiians just sort of adopted them. It makes me happy to know that they actually create the idea and is a positive part of their culture, and not just another adoption of their colonizer's culture.
- coldtea 8y agoAny good brands? I saw a mention of Reyn Spooners. Usually I made do with Tommy Bahamas.
- vadym909 8y agoNordstrom and Nordstrom Rack are usually good places to find good brands and deals inc Reyn Spooner and Tommy Bahamas
- greggman 8y agoI'm curious. much of South East Asia has the Batik shirts. The higher end ones are considered formalwear. Is there any connection?
- Turing_Machine 8y agoThen there are those embroidered shirts from the Philippines. Those are awesome -- they don't seem to be as common now, but you still sometimes see older Filipino gentlemen wearing them on "dress-up" occasions.
- timwaagh 8y agoJust got two of them in today. I love this type of shirt.
- bradknowles 8y agoI have some Sig Zane shirts. Love them. They are proper Aloha shirts. Bought them in Hilo, when my wife and I were on vacation a couple of years ago to the big island. I also have some shirts with much bolder fluorescent colors and more garish styling, many of which I bought at Hilo Hattie's, which ironically does not exist in Hilo. I bought mine on Maui, during that same trip. The latter are what I would call "Hawaiian Shirts", with quotes intact. Only suitable for tourists to wear. No local would be caught dead in them. Here on the mainland, I wear my "Hawaiian Shirts" every day, and on days with hot weather, I also wear cargo shorts and Keen sandals. I wouldn't want to work any place that would not allow me to wear the clothes that make me feel comfortable.