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 A History of Hawaiian ImmigrationA Global Workforce Creates a Multi-Ethnic Community With options of fishing, taro farming and other traditional food activities, Hawaiians were less enthusiastic about the regimen of industrial labor. Furthermore, their communities were not large enough to provide the thousands of workers needed for the rapid expansion of the sugar industry after 1876. Between 1852 and 1946, approximately 395,000 people were brought to Hawaii to work in the sugar fields. Other immigrant groups who came to Hawaii, although in much smaller numbers, include: Gilbert Islanders, Norwegians, Germans, Galacians, Spanish, Hindus, African Americans and Russians. Many workers chose to return to their homelands and for some, like the Spanish, Hawaii was a stepping-stone to the mainland. Many remained and made Hawaii their home. Their shared experiences of backbreaking labor, low pay and constant supervision created the foundation for these laborers to overcome their differences and find common ground. Hawaii's plantation communities always had a disproportionate number of single male workers and, in the early years, social relationships were associated with a bachelor lifestyle. Not until 1920 did women and children make up half of the plantation community. It is the workers who stayed in Hawaii and raised families who forged a new plantation community in which elements of their individual cultures merged to form the basis of modern multicultural Hawaii.
Chinese
Primarily bachelors intending to return to China, those men who stayed usually left the plantations after finishing their contracts. They often started families by marrying Hawaiian women. 46,000 came over these years.
(1852 - 1897) Portuguese
Recruited as families, the Portuguese came to Hawaii with every intention of staying. Although starting as field workers, they often moved into Luna positions. 17,500 came during these years.
(1878 - 1913) Puerto Ricans
Recruited as families, Puerto Ricans emigrated to Hawaii expecting to establish a new community. They traveled to Hawaii via a long railroad ride across the U.S. from New Orleans to California. 5,200 came during these years.
(1878 - 1913) Japanese
Originally, single men dominated this group. But after women emigrated as picture brides, families became more common. As the largest immigrant group, their cultural influence is seen throughout the plantation community. 180,000 came over these years.
(1885 - 1924) Okinawans
Okinawa was annexed by Japan in 1879. First counted as part of the Japanese immigration, Okinawans are a distinct cultural group whose interactions with the 'Naichi' constitute a complex history.
(1900 - 1924) Koreans
Over 40% of Korean immigrants were Christians seeking religious freedom and a western way of life in Hawaii. Others had political motives and sought to establish an overseas base for the Korean nationalist struggle. 7,000 Koreans came during these years.
(1903 - 1905) Filipinos
The first immigrants were mostly single men. Sporadic immigration by Filipino women created small family communities that embraced the large bachelor community and developed a new extended kinship network.
(1906 - 1946) Hawaii's Plantation Village and Museum |
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