What is the History of the Hawaiian Shirt?

Image credit; Morays Muse. Hawaiian shirt illustration.

This is the first in a two part series talking into the concept of paradise through the lens of clothing. Our piece on the denim craze during the Gold rush can be found here. In the realm of fashion, paradise can be associated with couture week, luxurious gold sandals, or even a unique fish skin bag . Nevertheless, for a significant number of people, paradise takes the form of a simple lifejacket. Throughout its history, America has been viewed as a paradise for immigrants, with landmarks like Ellis Island serving as the doorway to this aspiration.

Our first item is the Hawaiian shirt, a shirt that has become with the laid-back, carefree spirit of the islands yet carries a complex history of immigration and a tale of colonialism .

What is the History of the Hawaiian Shirt? The Hawaiian shirt owes its existence to the immigrant tailors who moved to the islands to work on the growing plantations in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. These tailors, primarily of Asian descent, crafted the original shirts from imported upholstery fabric from Asia during the Great Depression. The shirt we know today was popularised when Ellery Chun, a Chinese merchant, registered the term 'Aloha Shirt' in 1936.

Hawaii’s immigrant history is deeply intertwined with the shirt's origin. Asians are the largest immigrant population in Hawaii, a trend that began with the establishment of the Koloa sugar plantation in 1835.

Image credit; Kaui Historical Society. The Koloa Sugar Mill a source of employment for Asian migrants

In 1852, the first large group of Chinese laborers arrived, and as the native Hawaiian population declined, laborers were increasingly sourced from Japan, China, Korea, and the Philippines. British, American, and Spanish imperial aggression created the conditions that facilitated this wave of Asian immigration, with events like the Opium Wars in China pushing people to seek a new life in Hawaii.

However, the journey was not easy. The 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act in America highlighted the racial discrimination these communities faced, even as they were essential to the economy. By 1903, Korean immigrants began arriving under the supervision of the Korean Immigration Bureau, further solidifying the strong Asian community in Hawaii.

Image credit; library of congress, first page of the Chinese exclusion act

The Hawaiian shirt, much like the Tiki bars and luaus popularised on the mainland, is so commodified. What was once a unique 'cultural' garment became a mass-produced symbol of leisure, often stripped of its deeper significance.

With anti-Asian racism still prevalent and the Native Hawaiian population suffering from the effects of over tourism, we must approach this symbol of paradise with a more informed perspective. We must also consider how immigration impacted the native Hawaiian population, and the multiple effects colonialism had on Hawaii. The influx of immigrants altered the social, cultural, and economic landscape, which had lasting effects on the indigenous community The Hawaiian shirt is more than just a colourful piece of clothing; it is a testament to the resilience and contributions of the immigrant communities that helped build Hawaii but also how colonialism has a knock on effect.