Foreword

Extract from Paddlers Guide to Outrigger Canoeing

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Throughout The Paddlers Guide to Outrigger Canoeing, in accordance with respect for traditional names, as the kayak is to the Inuit, so too the wa`a [va-a] or va`a [va-a] is to the Hawaiians and Tahitians respectively. Therefore, where appropriate, outrigger canoe is replaced with either wa`a [Hawaii] or va`a [Tahiti]; va`a however is used as the predominant term for the sport as a whole. While these are considered general terms, the descriptive Hawaiian name for an outrigger canoe is wa`a kaukahi. Through most of French Polynesia, va`a is used to describe most existing canoe types with the exception of the Marquesas, where vaka is more popular, as it is in the Cook Islands – though va`a is still understood. In Samoa, va`a is still used as a general term, while in New Zealand, waka ama is in common use, though amatiatia was the traditional name used to describe a canoe with outrigger assembly.

The word canoe originated from an American Indian word kenu - meaning dugout. When Christopher Columbus happened upon the natives of the Cariban West Indians of Haiti paddling hollowed out tree logs and propelled with paddles, the name was ultimately recorded with a Spanish lilt as canoa and subsequently canoe, brought into popular use in 1555. Far more than an issue of semantics, there is an urgent need to address issues of the application of culturally accurate names for different canoe types.

Typically, many euro-centric researchers and subsequently those of European decent who assisted in the development of contemporary wa`a racing (Hawai`i) choose to use, outrigger canoe, ironically perpetuating a common disregard for the Hawaiian language and ultimately for the wa`a itself, a practice continued to this day. Validating a genuine concern of reviving an ancient Hawaiian pastime would not preclude the correct use of the Hawaiian language when describing the craft, at least one would assume so, but is was however for the most part overlooked.

It is an arguable fact, that the rudder steered solo and duo hybrid va`a hoe of  Tahiti, modified by Anglo-Hawaiians could be considered the only craft worthy of being called by another name, as they have no traditional basis or equivalent; contemporary in all but the use of an outrigger assembly and use of single blade. There are many island groups of Polynesia, Micronesia and Melanesia participating in the sport of outrigger canoe racing. The International Va`a Federation reiterates the need to use a culturally appropriate word to describe the canoe type we are concerned with. As participants in the sport, consider the long-term implications of failing to use the correct term of wa`a or va`a as it relates to the future development and uniqueness of the craft itself. By using these terms, a clear distinction is made in terms of the canoe type, origin and sport itself.