tiki culture

English

Noun

tiki culture (usually uncountable, plural tiki cultures)

1. A form of American popular culture inspired by Hawaiian, Polynesian, Melanesian and Micronesian cultures, and characterized by "exotic" ornamentation and alcoholic drinks.

   Synonym: Polynesian pop

   • 2011 October 3, Wayne Curtis, “From Tiki to Tacky—and Back”, in The Atlantic‎^[1]:

     This year’s Hukilau was staged partially at the Mai-Kai Restaurant, which is the Angkor Wat of tiki culture. […] The restaurant opened in 1956 and has remained essentially unchanged ever since, an oasis of shrunken heads, tiki totems, and tiny waterfalls.

   • 2018, Geoff Alexander, America Goes Hawaiian: The Influence of Pacific Island Culture on the Mainland, McFarland, →ISBN, page 121:

     In reality, it is tiki culture that describes a phenomenon that seems to be stronger and more prolific today than it has ever been. A surprising number of tiki websites and thousands of other tiki-oriented pages are scattered over the internet.

   • 2020, Dan Nosowitz, “What the Heck is Crab Rangoon Anyway?”, in J. Kenji López-Alt, editor, The Best American Food Writing 2020, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, →ISBN, page 227:

     Starting in the 1940s, thanks to returning World War II veterans, the country began a decades-long obsession with the aquamarine hues and tropical vibes of Polynesia, or at least a vague idea what Polynesia might be. It manifested as what we know as tiki culture.

Further reading

• tiki culture on Wikipedia.Wikipedia