Islamic Hawai'i

1. How could Islam successfully spread to the Island chain?
2. What (predominately) Muslim group would have the best chances of reaching the islands?
3. When could this occur?
4. What affects would this have on Hawaiian culture, both prior to and after being annexed by the U.S.(or any other power with interest in the islands)?
5. Would Islam remain the way it was, or would it be merged with the Hawaiian faith?
 
1. How could Islam successfully spread to the Island chain?

Quiet difficult I would say at least without very early POD. Probably you should keep Iberia as Muslim nation so Catholism is not going spread to Americas so effectively. Perhaps Muslims could take too Southern France keeping France weaker. Try too find way keep England weak and never colonise Pacific. Then you might get Muslims to Hawaii.

2. What (predominately) Muslim group would have the best chances of reaching the islands?

Perhaps Sunnis but considering that you might need very early POD you might too create some new Muslim groups.

3. When could this occur?

Perhaps early 19th century like OTL Christianity.

4. What affects would this have on Hawaiian culture, both prior to and after being annexed by the U.S.(or any other power with interest in the islands)?

Impossible to say due early POD. And there wouldn't be even United States. History would be very different.

5. Would Islam remain the way it was, or would it be merged with the Hawaiian faith?

Probably Hawaii would be totally converted to Islam. There might be some pockets of native religion but it would be mostly Muslim. And there hardly would be syncretic religion of native faith and Islam when Islam wouldn't allow much of variations. And Hawaiians are not big enough group making much else than mostly convert to Islam.
 
Another route of entry is sugar plantations attracting people from say Indonesia for sugar workers instead of Japan.
Also, maybe malay traders and sailors could get there first. There is no rule that the first contact between Hawaii and the outside world has to come from western europe.
 
Another route of entry is sugar plantations attracting people from say Indonesia for sugar workers instead of Japan.
Actually, it's easier than that, even. One of the OTL major sources of sugar workers was...the Philippines. So all you really need to do is have them become the main source of laborers, and have most of the Filipinos who come over be from Mindanao, and you can rather easily make Islam at least a very major religion in Hawai'i, the way Buddhism is IOTL.
 
Also, maybe malay traders and sailors could get there first. There is no rule that the first contact between Hawaii and the outside world has to come from western europe.

I was thinking something like this. If Hawaii or other Polynesian islands converted to Islam, the source could be Muslim travelers from Southeast Asia (especially Indonesia, Malaysia, Southern Philippines; which are all incidentally places with native populations of Austronesian Muslims).
 
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