Kava culture

Kava cultures are the religious and cultural traditions of western Oceania which consume kava. There are similarities in the use of kava between the different cultures, but each one also has its own traditions.

Tampa Bay Area

In and around the St. Petersburg/Clearwater area Kava has gained popularity in 'ethobotanical' tea bars. The tea is drunk communally and used to reduce anxiety and produce euphoria. Kava, and Kratom Leaf and Yerba Mate, have gained considerable popularity in the area.

Fiji

In Fiji, kava (also called "grog" or "yaqona") is drunk at all times of day in both public and private settings. The consumption of the drink is a form of welcome and figures in important socio-political events. Both genders drink kava.

Futuna

On Futuna kava drinking is used to install a new chief.

Hawaiʻi

In Hawaiʻi, at least 30 varieties of ʻawa (kava) were used for medicinal, religious, political, cultural and social purposes by all social classes, both men and women.

Rotuma

In Rotuma, kava has two contexts, ceremonial and informal.

Kava

Kava or kava-kava (Piper methysticum: Latin "pepper" + Latinized Greek "intoxicating") is a crop of the western Pacific.

The name kava(-kava) is from Tongan and Marquesan; other names for kava include ʻawa (Hawaiʻi), ava (Samoa), yaqona (Fiji), sakau (Pohnpei), and malok or malogu (parts of Vanuatu).

The roots of the plant are used to produce a drink with sedative anesthetic, and entheogenic properties. Kava is consumed throughout the Pacific Ocean cultures of Polynesia, including Hawaii, Vanuatu, Melanesia and some parts of Micronesia. (See canoe plants.) Kava is sedating and is primarily consumed to relax without disrupting mental clarity. Its active ingredients are called kavalactones. A Cochrane Collaboration systematic review of its evidence concluded it was likely to be more effective than placebo at treating short-term social anxiety.

Characteristics

The several cultivars of kava vary in concentrations of primary and secondary psychoactive alkaloids. The largest number are grown in the Republic of Vanuatu, and so it is recognised as the "home" of kava. Kava was historically grown only in the Pacific islands of Hawaii, Federated States of Micronesia, Vanuatu, Fiji, the Samoas and Tonga. Some is grown in the Solomon Islands since World War II, but most is imported. Kava is a cash crop in Vanuatu and Fiji.