What makes a Hawaiian sport shirt an "authentic" Hawaiian sport shirt? Ultimately, I suppose it has to be made in Hawai'i (by Hawaiians?). But is there a particular fabric that it has to be before it's authentic?

 

By the way, we're planning a trip there this summer.

https://www.alohashirtshop.com/hawaiian-lifestyle/vintage-hawaiian-shirts/" rel="nofollow - https://www.alohashirtshop.com/hawaiian-lifestyle/vintage-hawaiian-shirts/

Here is an interesting read on the history

It is the details IMO like the cut, buttons, collar and print that make it an authentic Hawaiian shirt

Some info on identifying vintage Aloha shirts 

https://hubpages.com/style/How-To-Identify-Vintage-Hawaiian-Shirts" rel="nofollow - https://hubpages.com/style/How-To-Identify-Vintage-Hawaiian-Shirts

Other features worth mentioning are the collar size & shape which is a good way of determining what era the shirt is from. 

Some would say a matched pocket is a mark of quality. i.e. where the the pocket has been cut so the decorative pattern lines up exactly with the fabric on the shirt body.

https://flic.kr/p/2io47iQ" rel="nofollow"> https://flic.kr/p/2io47iQ" rel="nofollow - booth by https://www.flickr.com/photos/52982610@N06/" rel="nofollow - bottleswest , on Flickr

A little side hobby of mine. It pays for what i want to collect.

I'll dig them out of here.

 

I do have one, though, but it's not old, unless ten years is old. It was supposedly made in Hawaii. It's a cotton/rayon blend, which I think makes for a perfect weight and feel. I don't think I've examined a rayon shirt but rayon might be called artificial silk. I do have a silk sports shirt that doesn't pretend to be Hawaiian but I rarely wear it. It's too good to wear. The Hawaiian-made shirt that I do wear (and like) has a fairly subdued pattern, which is of flying boats and a few background clouds and palm trees, all on a pale blue field.

 

I noted in one of the links that mention of early shirts through the 40s into the 50s having long collar points. I have a French army khaki shirt from the late 40s that also has long collar points that look very dated today. A later model had shorter collar points. Oddly enough, the pre-war French army shirt (M35) had a button-down collar, even to include a button on the back of the collar. Remember that feature from the 50s and 60s? Before that, French army shirts had no collar but I don't remember that far back.

 

I always thought that Pendleton had especially nice sport shirts, both wool and cotton and for some curious reason, the wool sport shirts (still available at high prices) were supposedly popular with the surfing crowd, as were Hawaiian shirts. The Beach Boys started out as the Pentletones, I think.

 

We've been to the Bahamas and to Bermuda and I don't recall noticing anyone wearing what would be called a Hawaiian sports shirt. Or a Mexican-style shirt, which probably has a similar history.