History of the Va’a
(Source: Wikipedia)
Va’a have been traveling the Pacific Ocean for more than 4,000 years. In around 2,000 BC a wave of seafaring people emerged from Asia and ventured out into the Eastern Pacific Ocean, for the first time in Human history. The earliest va’a are thought to have originated at this time and we now know that ancient Polynesians and their ancestors settled the most remote islands of the Pacific in single and double hull va’a. These canoes were often sailing vessels and could be much larger than today’s racing V6. When the first Europeans arrived in Polynesia, sailing va’as of up to 30 meters in length were recorded, designed for long ocean passages.
Va’a were originally developed by the Austronesian speaking peoples of the islands of Southeast Asia for sea travel, and were used to transport these peoples both eastward to Polynesia and New Zealand and westward across the Indian Ocean as far as Madagascar during the Austronesian migration period. Even today, it is mostly among the Austronesian groups (Malay, Micronesian, Melanesian and Polynesian peoples) that va’a are used.
Va’a for fishing are also used among certain non-Austronesian groups, like the Sinhala in Sri Lanka, where they are known as oruwa, as well as among some people groups in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
When Magellan’s ships first encountered the Chamorros of the Mariana Islands in 1521, Antonio Pigafetta recorded that the Chamorros’ sailboats far surpassed Magellan’s in speed and maneuverability.
The Polynesian Voyaging Society has two double hull sailing va’a, Hōkūle’a and Hawai’iloa, and sails them between various islands in the Pacific using traditional Polynesian navigation methods without instruments.
The technology has persisted into the modern age. Va’a can be quite large fishing or transport vessels, and in the Philippines, outrigger canoes (called bangka, parao or balanghai) are often fitted with petrol engines. The links between seafaring and outrigger canoes in the Philippines extend through to political life, in which the smallest political unit in the country still called Barangay after the historical Balanghai outrigger proas used in the original migrations of the first Austronesian peoples across the archipelago and beyond.
History of modern Va’a Sport
Records show that from the beginning there were Va’a races, mostly between fishermen, families and small Polynesian and Melanesian villages. Later, teams from different islands were competing against each other and today, paddlers from all over the world come together to race in Va’a.
The modern Va’a sport was developed in Tahiti and Hawaii. At the beginning of the 19th Century, Va’a races in the lagoon already played an important role during the traditional cultural “Heiva” festival in Tahiti. At the turn of the 20th Century, organized va’a races emerged in Hawaii, where clubs like Hui Nalu and the Outrigger Canoe Club that were founded at that time still thrive today.
In particular from Tahiti and Hawaii, the modern va’a sport spread around most of the Polynesian, Micronesian and Melanesian Islands, but also moved to Australia, USA, Canada, South America and Asia…and finally to Europe.
(Source: Wikipedia)
Va’a have been traveling the Pacific Ocean for more than 4,000 years. In around 2,000 BC a wave of seafaring people emerged from Asia and ventured out into the Eastern Pacific Ocean, for the first time in Human history. The earliest va’a are thought to have originated at this time and we now know that ancient Polynesians and their ancestors settled the most remote islands of the Pacific in single and double hull va’a. These canoes were often sailing vessels and could be much larger than today’s racing V6. When the first Europeans arrived in Polynesia, sailing va’as of up to 30 meters in length were recorded, designed for long ocean passages.
Va’a were originally developed by the Austronesian speaking peoples of the islands of Southeast Asia for sea travel, and were used to transport these peoples both eastward to Polynesia and New Zealand and westward across the Indian Ocean as far as Madagascar during the Austronesian migration period. Even today, it is mostly among the Austronesian groups (Malay, Micronesian, Melanesian and Polynesian peoples) that va’a are used.
Va’a for fishing are also used among certain non-Austronesian groups, like the Sinhala in Sri Lanka, where they are known as oruwa, as well as among some people groups in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
When Magellan’s ships first encountered the Chamorros of the Mariana Islands in 1521, Antonio Pigafetta recorded that the Chamorros’ sailboats far surpassed Magellan’s in speed and maneuverability.
The Polynesian Voyaging Society has two double hull sailing va’a, Hōkūle’a and Hawai’iloa, and sails them between various islands in the Pacific using traditional Polynesian navigation methods without instruments.
The technology has persisted into the modern age. Va’a can be quite large fishing or transport vessels, and in the Philippines, outrigger canoes (called bangka, parao or balanghai) are often fitted with petrol engines. The links between seafaring and outrigger canoes in the Philippines extend through to political life, in which the smallest political unit in the country still called Barangay after the historical Balanghai outrigger proas used in the original migrations of the first Austronesian peoples across the archipelago and beyond.
History of modern Va’a Sport
Records show that from the beginning there were Va’a races, mostly between fishermen, families and small Polynesian and Melanesian villages. Later, teams from different islands were competing against each other and today, paddlers from all over the world come together to race in Va’a.
The modern Va’a sport was developed in Tahiti and Hawaii. At the beginning of the 19th Century, Va’a races in the lagoon already played an important role during the traditional cultural “Heiva” festival in Tahiti. At the turn of the 20th Century, organized va’a races emerged in Hawaii, where clubs like Hui Nalu and the Outrigger Canoe Club that were founded at that time still thrive today.
In particular from Tahiti and Hawaii, the modern va’a sport spread around most of the Polynesian, Micronesian and Melanesian Islands, but also moved to Australia, USA, Canada, South America and Asia…and finally to Europe.