A deep-dive into the history of paniolo, the cowboys of Hawaii
Cowboys are known for their place in the wild American West in the late 1800s, but the Paniolo Preservation Society website says cowboys on the islands of Hawai’i were thriving in the 1830s, long before they were popular in the United States. “The paniolos are the original cowboys,” said Alpha Harper, a BYU–Hawaii alumna from Canada who did an honors project on the history of the pa’u riders, which are female horse riders who evolved from paniolo.
The history of paniolo is “not a story that’s commonly known,” explained Isaiah Walker, Academic vice president of BYUH and a historian. But “when you realize that there were other cultures that embraced cowboy culture even before there was an American West, you realize there are different flavors of cowboy culture. Hawaii has its own flavor.”
According to the National Park Services website, “These Hawaiian cowboys were called ‘paniolo,’ a Hawaiianized version of the word ‘español.’” Harper explained that Captain James Vancouver, a British explorer, brought the first cattle to Hawaii in 1793, and “once the food source had been introduced … they needed a way to control them. The paniolos were critical to making sure everything could work in harmony and keep people safe.”
With an abundance of cattle on the island and little to no ranching knowledge, King Kamehameha III enlisted the help of Mexican vaqueros, or cowboys, from California who taught the Hawaiians how to rope, slaughter, breed cattle, cure hides, about fences, grass and paddocks… [and] how to work with the horses,” explains nps.gov.
Harper said the paniolo were “vital in taking control of the situations brought upon the island by outside people.” The paniolo were also crucial in introducing the ali’i, or Hawaiian nobility, and the pa’u riders to horses, Harper explained. She said, “They developed horse handling and riding techniques,” and trained the horses for the ali’i.
“The paniolo culture, when they’re working with horses, there’s a camaraderie and a very great love and appreciation for each other’s skills and companionship,” Harper shared.
Walker said the paniolos skill in learning from the vaqueros showcased the strength of Hawaiian culture. “Hawaiian culture has adapted to a lot of things over time, and they’ve been really good at taking something and making it their own and moving forward with it in very progressive kinds of ways,” he said.
Nps.gov says three of the most notable paniolos were Ikua Purdy, Archie Ka’au’a and Jack Low, who competed in Frontier Days in Cheyenne, Wyoming in 1908. In the steer-roping contest, nps.gov shares, Ikua Purdy came in first place, Archie Ka’au’a placed second and Jack Low came in sixth. It states, “Hawaii’s paniolo had defeated the best American cowboys and had put Hawaiian paniolo on the world stage.”
Walker said paniolos “like Ikua Purdy, who were going overseas [and] challenging social norms with race,” displayed the resilience of both the Hawaiian and paniolo cultures.
Another family who was influential in paniolo culture was the Parker family, Walker shared. “The Parker family was an American family who came to Hawaii,” he said, “but they quickly married into the royal family in
Hawaii, and most of them became immersed in the Hawaiian community.” Walker explained the Parker family started the Parker Ranch in 1847 in Waimea on the Island of Hawai’i, and it remains one of the biggest cattle ranches in the United States today. He said Parker Ranch “has that cowboy feel to it, but it’s in a Hawaiian community … [It] was one of the first areas where it feels like a Western town.”
Evolution of the paniolo culture
Harper said paniolos were influenced by the vaqueros in ways other than just their riding and ranching techniques. She said the vaqueros brought guitars with them when they came to Hawaii, which led to the creation of the kī hō’alu, or slack-key guitar. “Nobody knew how to tune a guitar when the Spanish left,” Harper said, “so whoever had the guitar, they would all tune to his guitar. That’s why it’s called slack-key.”
While not developed by paniolos specifically, Walker said the steel guitar is an instrument from Hawaii that has been heavily incorporated into country music and Western culture. There’s a “parallel between paniolo culture and music,” he said.
According to seaparadise.com, Hawaiian paniolo have developed a culture separate from Western cowboy culture since the vaqueros left. “They sang songs accompanying themselves on the ‘ukulele and guitar …
Unlike the wide-brimmed hats of the American cowboys, paniolos often wore hats made of lauhala, a type of Hawaiian palm, adorned with lei po’o, or head leis,” it explains Volcanovillageestates.com says paniolo wear colorful prints on light fabric, distinguishing them from traditional American cowboys and showcasing Hawaiian influence. Seaparadise.com explains modern-day paniolo continue to celebrate their culture through rodeos, parades and festivals. They exist all over the Hawaiian islands using “a combination of traditional and modern techniques to raise cattle,” seaparadise.com explains.
Students’ perceptions of paniolo
Amy Henrichsen, a sophomore from Indiana majoring in marine biology, said the only exposure to paniolo cowboys she had previously was through the movie “Castaway Cowboy.” It is about a guy from Texas who was washed up on Hawaii, and he helped everybody wrangle the native cattle, she said.
“There was a whole lot of nonsense thrown in because it’s an old [movie], and it’s the 1974 version of how island life is,” she shared.
BYUH students like Henrichsen experienced aspects of paniolo culture during the Banyan Dining Hall’s “Paniolo Hoedown” event on Sept. 11. Students who were unfamiliar with paniolo culture thought it was Western cowboy-themed, expressing how they enjoyed the event because of how familiar it felt. Malakai Lavaki, a junior from Tonga majoring in biochemistry, said the theme was “more Westernized, but I feel like everyone’s really familiar with it, so everyone’s a part of it.”
Walker said on Oahu, “Gunstock Ranch is where you’ll see a lot of Hawaiians working there doing cowboy kinds of things, but most people see the Big Island as the home and the center of paniolo culture.”