The Hawaiian Islands sit at the cultural and geographic heart of the Pacific, part of a vast oceanic region known as Oceania—home to the Indigenous peoples of Polynesia, Micronesia, and Melanesia. These island nations and territories share rich traditions of voyaging, oral history, and deep kinship with the ocean, shaping diverse yet interconnected identities.

As we come together in Hawaiʻi for the 44th ISTS Symposium, we acknowledge that we are guests on the traditional lands of the Kānaka Maoli (Native Hawaiian people) and part of a wider Pacific community. We encourage attendees to learn about the histories and cultures of Hawaiʻi and the Pacific Islands, to engage with respect and openness, and to honor the values of aloha, kinship, and kuleana (responsibility) that are deeply rooted in this region.

Hawaiʻi and the Pacific Islands: History, Culture, and Connection

Hawaiʻi

As the northernmost archipelago in Polynesia, Hawaiʻi has long been a center of Pacific innovation, cultural expression, and ecological stewardship. The Kānaka Maoli settled these islands more than a thousand years ago, navigating across thousands of miles of open ocean. They established a sophisticated society rooted in aloha (compassion), kuleana (responsibility), and pono (balance and righteousness).

By the early 19th century, the Hawaiian Islands were unified under King Kamehameha I, creating the internationally recognized Kingdom of Hawaiʻi. The Kingdom maintained treaties and diplomatic relations with major world powers, including the United States, Great Britain, France, and Japan. However, as global political and economic interests expanded in the Pacific, Hawaiʻi became increasingly entangled in international power dynamics.

In 1893, a group of foreign residents—primarily American and European businessmen—staged a coup against Queen Liliʻuokalani with the support of U.S. military forces. The overthrow led to the eventual annexation of Hawaiʻi by the United States in 1898, despite widespread opposition from Native Hawaiians and the Kingdom’s allies. This event is widely viewed as illegal by many Native Hawaiians and international legal scholars. In 1993, the U.S. Congress passed the Apology Resolution, acknowledging the U.S. role in the overthrow and expressing regret for the loss of Hawaiian sovereignty.

Queen Liliʻuokalani

Following the overthrow, Hawaiʻi entered a period of intense social and demographic change. As the islands’ plantation economy grew, laborers were brought from around the world—especially from China, Japan, Korea, the Philippines, Portugal, and Puerto Rico—to work in sugar and pineapple fields. This immigration dramatically reshaped Hawaiʻi’s population and contributed to the multicultural fabric that defines the islands today

These communities, though often brought under difficult conditions, enriched Hawaiʻi with language, food, religion, and cultural traditions that endure to this day. The blending of Indigenous, Asian, Pacific Islander, and European influences has created a unique and vibrant local culture, though not without ongoing challenges related to equity, land rights, and cultural preservation.

Today, Hawaiʻi is home to a diverse population that includes the descendants of these immigrant communities, as well as strong and resilient Native Hawaiian communities who continue to practice traditional arts, revitalize language and ceremony, and advocate for justice and sovereignty.

Across the wider Pacific Islands region, many nations and territories share deep ancestral ties, shaped by millennia of voyaging, exchange, and kinship. From Polynesia to Micronesia and Melanesia, Pacific Island societies developed unique cultures, languages, and governance systems, yet they remain linked by common values—such as collective responsibility, reverence for the ocean, and close stewardship of land and sea.

Many Pacific nations—such as Sāmoa, Tonga, Fiji, Palau, the Marshall Islands, and Kiribati—maintained traditional governance systems and spiritual relationships with their environments long before the arrival of colonial powers. The 19th and 20th centuries brought waves of colonization, missionary influence, war, and resistance. These experiences often paralleled Hawaiʻi’s own: imposition of foreign systems, struggles for sovereignty, and the ongoing work of cultural and environmental resurgence.

Despite these challenges, Pacific peoples have continuously preserved and revitalized their languages, arts, and identities. The canoe remains a powerful symbol of unity and heritage across Oceania—seen in the widespread resurgence of traditional wayfinding, such as the voyages of the Hawaiian Hōkūleʻa and collaborations with navigators from Satawal, Tahiti, Rapa Nui, Aotearoa (New Zealand), and beyond. These shared efforts affirm longstanding inter-island relationships and celebrate the strength of Pacific cultures.

Today, Pacific Island nations are also at the forefront of global discussions around climate justice, ocean conservation, and Indigenous knowledge. Leaders and communities from across the region are actively shaping international policy while drawing from deeply rooted cultural values that emphasize balance, sustainability, and intergenerational care.