Unwritten Literature Of Hawaii: The Sacred Songs of the Hula

By Nathaniel B. Emerson

This classic study of the Hula is a gold-mine of information for explorers of Hawaiian language, music, dance and culture. Gives the full annotated Hawaiian text of the songs, along with an English translation. As in many other traditional cultures, Hawaiian art, dance, music and poetry were highly integrated into every aspect of life, to a degree far beyond that of industrial society. The poetry at the core of the Hula is extremely sophisticated. Typically a Hula song has several dimensions: mythological aspects, cultural implications, an ecological setting, and in many cases, (although Emerson is reluctant to acknowledge this) frank erotic imagery. The extensive footnotes and background information allow us an unprecedented look into these deeper layers. While Emerson's translations are not great poetry, they do serve as a literal English guide to the amazing Hawaiian lyrics.

• Language: English
• Publisher: David De Angelis
• Release date: Jun 1, 2017
• ISBN: 9788826446004

Nathaniel B. Emerson

Nathaniel B. Emerson (1839-1915) was an American physician and historian. Born in Waialua, Oahu, Emerson was the son of Protestant missionaries. Wounded in action as a member of the First Regiment of the Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry during the Civil War, he went on to graduate from Williams College in 1865. In 1869, he completed his studies at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons and took a job at Bellevue Hospital in New York City. In 1878, he left his career as a doctor behind to return to Hawaii, where he gained a reputation as a leading historian and authority on Hawaiian mythology. In addition to his groundbreaking translation of David Malo’s historical work on the islands, Emerson published several books on Hawaii, including Unwritten Literature of Hawaii (1909) and Pele and Hiiaka: A Myth From Hawaii (1915). Despite his contribution to Hawaiian culture as a folklorist and translator, Emerson has been criticized for his role in authoring the 1887 Constitution of the Hawaiian Kingdom, known as the Bayonet Constitution, which transferred power from the native Hawaiian monarchy to American and European imperialists and their native collaborators.