Jeanné Kapela, one of the House bill's co-sponsors, said residents are “so lucky to have a visual signal for sharing aloha with each other.” Sean Quinlan, who introduced the House bill at the behest of a documentary filmmaker exploring the sign's backstory.īig Island state Rep. “It’s such a versatile gesture,” said state Rep. It was particularly useful in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, when people were afraid to shake hands. It can convey greetings, gratitude or assent, or it can defuse tension. Some hold it low when greeting a child, and some like to flash double shakas. The shaka carries friendliness and warmth - aloha spirit. “As long as you get your pinky finger and your thumb out, you can wave it or you can just do just a flat shaka,” Dennis Caballes, a Honolulu resident, said while fishing at a beach park. She prefers to flash a shaka with the palm facing outwards, as a sign of respect: “It’s shaka-ing to you, not to me.” “I feel awkward if I’m just standing still.” If you do, “you’re a tourist," he said.īut Erin Issa, one of his colleagues at Central Pacific Bank, likes to wag hers. “It’s just a strong movement - one movement,” said Chase Lee, who grew up just outside Honolulu. But in the capital city of Honolulu, it's common. Those from beach or rural communities tend not to shake their shakas. Some say the only requirement is an extended pinky and thumb. In practice, the shaka is far more nuanced. On paper, the House bill notes that the “shaka generally consists of extending the thumb and smallest finger while holding the three middle fingers curled, and gesturing in salutation while presenting the front or back of the hand the wrist may be rotated back and forth for emphasis.” Here are some things to know about Hawaii’s shaka - including its purported origin with a seven-fingered fisherman. Glenn Wakai, who introduced the Senate version, said he can’t imagine the measure meeting any opposition and expects it to “sail through.” Now, a pair of bills in the state Legislature would make the shaka the state's official gesture and recognize Hawaii as its birthplace. When captains of the Lahainaluna High School football team, from the Maui community devastated by last summer's deadly wildfire, were invited to the Super Bowl in Las Vegas last month, they flashed shakas for the cameras.
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