FOUNDATIONS OF HAWAIIAN CULTURE AND THE IMPORTANCE OF WATER

摘要

Waves of humans moving onward and outward from Africa along with subsequent events that lead to ethnic, social, and cultural diversification have been occurring for tens of thousands of years. Colonization by the human species of lands from the Arctic to the southern tips of Africa, Australia, and South America was accomplished on the feet of ancestral humans. Crossing the seas to establish new homes was accomplished largely in areas where lands could be followed for guidance. In western culture, most of the ancient epic voyages were accomplished in relatively small water bodies such as the Mediterranean and Black Seas, or via short distance island hopping in places like modern Indonesia. Land bridges interconnecting continents helped humans to reach North and South America and then rising seas isolated them for thousands of years from the rest of the world. At least from a landmass situation, humans had sought and found most of the habitable landmasses of the world: with one exception. Peoples who today are collectively called Polynesians, Melanesians, and Microne-sians came out of east Africa, southeastern Asia, and Taiwan to sail vast distances to colonize lands found in the last remaining third of the habitable world: the Pacific.