Tahitian and French Polynesian Culture

The first European to set foot in The Islands of Tahiti was Samuel Wallis in 1767, but the islanders had already been living here for over a thousand years. The first Polynesians came from Southeast Asia and spread throughout the Pacific.

The indigenous people of the Polynesian Triangle, which includes Hawaii, Easter Island, New Zealand and French Polynesia all have the same origins and similar culture.

Writing in 1831, W.Ellis described the dances in pre-European Polynesia as being “many and varied,” but few traces remain of what he witnessed. All we really know is that men and women danced, sometimes together and sometimes separately, sometimes standing and sometimes sitting.

Musicians accompanied the dancers with a limited number of instruments, essentially the pahu (a double skinned drum) and the vivo (nasal flute).

Like tattooing, dancing was associated with nudity and sensuality and was banned by the missionaries. It wasn’t until the 1950s that this ancestral art was reintroduced into Polynesian tradition and recreated thanks to oral transmission and the writings of early visitors to the islands.

Sculpture, weaving, sewing: artistic expression is rich and varied in Polynesia. The materials are mostly natural vegetal fibers, such as the pandanus leaves, coconut fiber and ni’au (coconut palms) used by the Tahitian mama to weave beautiful hats, bags and mats.

A love and appreciation of nature can be seen in the magnificent patterns of tifaifai hand sewn bedspreads. Precious woods such as tou and miro (local varieties of rosewood) are used to outstanding effect by local carpenters and sculptors.

Some craftsmen work with volcanic stone, coral and even bone to make superb creations. But the skills of the Polynesian artist are best displayed in the Tahitian pearl jewelry that adorns the necks and earlobes of our beautiful vahine.