Well, sort of. In the case of Samoa, Tahiti, and Hawai'i, at least, there were tapa (bark-cloth) versions of sarongs worn by men for special occasions. But many men typically wore just malo or maro, or loincloths, presumably of similar material. The cloth sarongs were kinda introduced...by the palagi, or haole....the Europeans. Actually, because of enlightened missionaries. They urged them to cover up more, but rather than adopting the whole "YOU BELONG TO US, YOU SHALL BE LIKE US" attitude that missionaries have used for a long time, it was more adopting to local ideas. With cloth available, the "i'e lavalava" ("Cloth that wraps around) became standard (the tapa version, in Samoa, was called an "i'e siapo", "siapo" being the Samoan name for tapa) The malo was initially "demoted" to underwear, for all purposes, but then seemed to have faded away. More formal versions of sarongs (generally tailored, with belt loops and pockets) emerged, for formal occasions, and also worn by police and for ceremonial uniforms for local military units and the police. Samoa, Fiji, and Tonga were the three Polynesian countries to have held on to the ie lavalava (and the formal version, the ie faitaga) the most (in Fiji, the formal version has a distinct serrated hem)Caultron wrote:I've been to the Polynesian Cultural Center as well, but I think the sarongs and grass skirts were always just traditional dress. The islanders had no need for trousers and just never invented them.
Grass skirts have a different story. For most of Polynesia, they were essentially introduced by the Melanesians, or sometimes even later, being influenced by Hawai'i and appropriating them that way. Fiji, being both Melanesian and Polynesian in culture, does have them. However, in Samoa, a version, made of leaves from the "ti" plant (and hence called a titi) existed, used for work in the fields, even after the lavalava was introduced.
And then there's the third garment, a fine mat of pandanus, in Samoa it's worn over a sarong on some occasions, in Tonga, it's essentially an equivalent to a necktie (and worn on all occasions when one would also wear a necktie)
I heard from someone that "skirt/dress over trousers" is something that comes in cycles. But also, some women do so if they need trousers for the weather, but take them off at home or something like that. Also, someone speculated that there may have been some inspiration from places like Pakistan, where the traditional outfit, for both genders, is a kind of tunic over trousers (the male version is the original "pajamas" for which the nightwear is named) But the look I've seen in some pictures of a guy wearing a skirt, with matching trousers or shorts very visible underneath....just don't like it.Grok wrote:I just got home from a CP'R (cardio pulmonary resuscitation) class. One student was wearing a dress over slacks. The weather was chilly but dry. I've reached the conclusion that the skirt-over-trousers mode is here to stay, at least for winter weather.
At least skirts over slacks looks better than skirts over jeans.