Kapa is a
fabric
Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, and different types of fabric. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is no ...
made by
native Hawaiians
Native Hawaiians (also known as Indigenous Hawaiians, Kānaka Maoli, Aboriginal Hawaiians, or simply Hawaiians; , , , and ) are the Indigenous Polynesian people of the Hawaiian Islands.
Hawaiʻi was settled at least 800 years ago by Polynesian ...
from the
bast fibre
Bast fibre (also called phloem fibre or skin fibre) is plant fibre collected from the phloem (the "inner bark", sometimes called "skin") or bast surrounding the stem of certain dicotyledonous plants. Some of the economically important bast fibre ...
s of certain species of trees and shrubs in the orders
Rosales
Rosales (, ) are an order of flowering plants. Peter F. Stevens (2001 onwards). "Rosales". At: Trees At: Angiosperm Phylogeny Website. At: Missouri Botanical Garden Website. (see ''External links'' below) Well-known members of Rosales include: ...
and
Malvales
The Malvales are an Order (biology), order of flowering plants. As circumscribed by Angiosperm Phylogeny Group, APG II-system, the order includes about 6000 species within nine Family (biology), families. The order is placed in the eurosids II, w ...
. The bark is beaten and felted to achieve a soft texture and dye stamped in geometric patterns.
Description and uses
Similar to
''tapa'' found elsewhere in
Polynesia
Polynesia ( , ) is a subregion of Oceania, made up of more than 1,000 islands scattered over the central and southern Pacific Ocean. The indigenous people who inhabit the islands of Polynesia are called Polynesians. They have many things in ...
(the
Hawaiian phoneme
A phoneme () is any set of similar Phone (phonetics), speech sounds that are perceptually regarded by the speakers of a language as a single basic sound—a smallest possible Phonetics, phonetic unit—that helps distinguish one word fr ...
corresponds to in most other
Polynesian languages
The Polynesian languages form a genealogical group of languages, itself part of the Oceanic branch of the Austronesian family.
There are 38 Polynesian languages, representing 7 percent of the 522 Oceanic languages, and 3 percent of the Austr ...
), kapa differs in the methods used in its creation. Kapa is based primarily on the creative combination of linear elements that cross and converge to form squares, triangles, chevrons, and diagonal forms, giving a feeling of boldness and directness. Kapa was used primarily for clothing like the ''malo'' worn by men as a loincloth and the ''pāū'' worn by women as a wraparound. Kapa was also used for , a shawl or cape worn over one shoulder. Other uses for kapa depended on
caste
A caste is a Essentialism, fixed social group into which an individual is born within a particular system of social stratification: a caste system. Within such a system, individuals are expected to marry exclusively within the same caste (en ...
and a person's place in ancient Hawaiian society.
' (bed covers) were reserved for the ''
alii'' or chiefly caste—several layers of kapa would be stitched together at the edges to form a kapa moe. Kapa robes were used by ''
kāhuna'' or priestly caste. Kapa was also used as banners where leis were hung from it and images of their gods were printed on it.
Techniques
Cultural anthropologists over the course of the 20th century identified techniques in the creation of kapa that are unique to the
Hawaiian Islands
The Hawaiian Islands () are an archipelago of eight major volcanic islands, several atolls, and numerous smaller islets in the Pacific Ocean, North Pacific Ocean, extending some from the Hawaii (island), island of Hawaii in the south to nort ...
. ''Wauke'' (''
Broussonetia papyrifera'') was the preferred source of bast fibres for kapa, but it was also made from ''ulu'' (''
Artocarpus altilis''),
''ōpuhe'' (''
Urera'' spp.),
''maaloa'' (''
Neraudia melastomifolia
''Neraudia melastomifolia'', known as ''maaloa'' in Hawaiian, is a species of flowering plant in the nettle family, Urticaceae, that is endemic to Hawaii. It is a shrub or small tree, reaching a height of up to . ''N. melastomifolia'' inhabits ...
''),
''māmaki'' (''
Pipturus albidus''),
''ākala'' (''
Rubus hawaiensis''), ''ākalakala'' (''
R. macraei''), and ''hau'' (''
Hibiscus tiliaceus''). In the 18th century, pieces of kapa were often made of grooving or ribbing. It is done by pushing the dampened cloth into the grooves of a special board. The ''wauke'' tree is cut and soaked in water. It is then laid on a ''kua kūkū'' (polished stone tablet) and beaten with a ''hōhoa'' (rounded beater). After the first phase of beating, the kapa is transferred to a sacred house to be beaten a second time, but in a religious manner.
Process
Each kapa manufacturer used an ''ie kūkū'', a beater with four flat sides that were each carved differently. Another way to carve the kapa is by starting on the four-sided affairs, with the coarsest grooves on one side used first in breaking down the bast, or wet bark. Then, the beating continued using two sides with finer grooves. Lastly, finishing touches were accomplished with the remaining smooth side of the beater. The carvings left an impression in the cloth that was hers alone. After the European discovery of the Hawaiian Islands, Western traders travelled to Hawaii especially for kapa.
The process of making kapa was done primarily by women. Young girls would learn by helping their mothers, over time doing the majority of the work, and when older could make kapa by themselves.
See also
*
Tapa cloth
Tapa cloth (or simply ''tapa'') is a barkcloth made in the islands of the Pacific Ocean, primarily in Tonga, Samoa and Fiji, but as far afield as Niue, Cook Islands, Futuna, Solomon Islands, Java, New Zealand, Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea and Ha ...
, similar fabric made elsewhere in Polynesia
References
Further reading
* Arkinstall, Patricia Lorraine (1966). ''A study of bark cloth from Hawaii, Samoa, Tonga and Fiji: an exploration of the regional development of distinctive styles of bark cloth and its relationship to other cultural factors''. Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University.
* Brigham, William Tufts (1911). ''Ka hana kapa, the making of bark cloth in Hawaii''. Honolulu, Hawaii: Bishop Museum Press.
* Kaeppler, Adrienne Lois (1975). ''The Fabrics of Hawaii (Bark Cloth)''. Leigh-on-Sea, England: F. Lewis. .
External links
Cook-Foster Collection at Georg-August University in Göttingen, Germany"Kapa: Fabric of a Culture"Article about the art of kapa making and kapa master Pua Van Dorpe by Rita Goldman. ''
Maui No Ka 'Oi Magazine
Maui (; Hawaiian: ) is the second largest island in the Hawaiian archipelago, at 727.2 square miles (1,883 km2). It is the 17th-largest in the United States. Maui is one of Maui County's five islands, along with Molokai, Lānai, K ...
'' Vol.12, No.1 (January 2008)
"Kapa: More to Learn"Pua Van Dorpe's kapa collection honoring 11 Maui chiefs. ''
Maui No Ka 'Oi Magazine
Maui (; Hawaiian: ) is the second largest island in the Hawaiian archipelago, at 727.2 square miles (1,883 km2). It is the 17th-largest in the United States. Maui is one of Maui County's five islands, along with Molokai, Lānai, K ...
'' Vol.12, No.1 (January 2008)
*
/www.womenfolk.com/quilting_history/hawaiian.htm History of Hawaiian quiltingbr>
kapa moe
{{Culture of Oceania
Hawaiiana
Nonwoven fabrics
History of Oceanian clothing
Textile arts of Hawaii
Fiber plants