What if surfing wasn’t just a sport—but a sacred form of healing, power, and rebellion led by women? 🏄‍♀️✨

In this archive episode of For the Love of History, we’re diving into the ancient Hawaiian origins of surfing, uncovering how it began not as a beach pastime but as a deeply spiritual practice rooted in Polynesian tradition. From volcano goddess Pele, the world’s first surfer, to Princess Kelea of Maui, who surfed her way to freedom, we explore the legendary surfing medicine women of Hawaii—women who used the waves as both therapy and resistance.

Discover how:

Surfing (nalu) was a religious ritual in pre-contact Hawaii 🌊

Women, not men, were the first to master and teach surfing 🩵

Surfing was used to heal sickness, heartbreak, and even death

Colonialism tried to erase these women’s stories—and how their legacy still lives on

Join us as we ride the waves of mythology, medicine, and feminist power through the history of Hawaiian surf culture. This episode is part myth, part history, and 100% proof that women have always ruled the waves. 🌴

🌺 Hawaii Peoples Fund 🌺

hawaiipeoplesfund.org

Historians of traditional Hawaiʻi

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