PhD in English- Oral Traditions, Folklore, and Cultural Studies in Honolulu United States | University of Hawaii at Manoa

Oral traditions and folklore serve as crucial bridges to the creative minds and lived experiences of everyday people who have shaped—and continue to shape—our world. These traditions profoundly influence our sense of identity within ethnic, national, gender-based, professional, and other communities. The realm of oral storytelling encompasses creation myths, fairy tales, heroic legends, Hawaiian wahi pana, ghost stories, humor, songs, chants, proverbs, and mythological accounts. However, oral traditions and folklore are not identical. While oral traditions often serve as communal history and literature within specific cultural contexts, folklore—a term adopted into English in 1848—extends beyond words to include festivals, culinary customs, dance, performance arts, and theatrical expressions alongside verbal narratives.

Scholars across fields like folklore studies, literature, indigenous research, gender studies, history, and cultural studies examine oral traditions and folklore through distinct lenses, yet all recognize them as both artistic expressions and reservoirs of knowledge. Researchers exploring the cultural output of women, indigenous communities, nations, youth, or diaspora populations increasingly focus on how these narratives adapt as they cross cultural boundaries and media platforms—from films to digital spaces.

Applying cultural studies to oral traditions and folklore reveals the historical dynamics of power and dissemination. This approach provides grounded insights into how colonialism and modern technologies have transformed Hawaiian and Oceanic oral practices, while highlighting contemporary indigenous efforts to revitalize these living traditions.