The Role of Seminary Schools in the Colonization of Hawaiian Gender Structures

Summary

This is an abstract from the "Archaeologies of Contact and Colonialism" session, at the 2019 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.

 Seminary boarding schools were established in Hawai‘i following the arrival of missionaries in 1820 for the purpose of educating the young men and women of Hawai‘i. These 19th century boarding schools were instruments of the colonial structure that worked to exact power and control over Kanaka Maoli (Native Hawaiian) bodies and land. Control of sexuality and gender constructs was an important tool in this process. This paper will examine historical and archaeological materials that illustrate gender and sexuality constructs previous to the implementation of these boarding schools, followed with an analysis of the impact of the schools on these cultural identities. Such research will allow for the identification and deconstruction of colonial structures that persist in scholarly interpretations of Hawaiian history. 

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Archaeologies of Contact and Colonialism   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2019

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Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

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PaperId(s): 398