“Junk an’ a po, I canna show!”
If you grew up in Hawaiʻi, chances are you’ve said those words more times than you can count. Maybe you used it to decide who went first, who got the last piece of candy or who had to do the job nobody wanted to do.
But did you know Junk an’ a Po has a history that goes all the way back to Hawaiʻi’s plantation days?
The game, known around the world as rock, paper, scissors, was brought to Hawaiʻi by Japanese immigrants who came to work on the islands’ plantations beginning in 1885. In Japan, the game was known as janken.
Once it landed in Hawaiʻi, though, it got a local makeover.
Known by many names around the world, this game was brought to Hawaiʻi by Japanese immigrants. Photo courtesy: magnific
The Japanese chant “jankenpon, aiko desho” gradually became the much more familiar Hawaiʻi version:
“Jan ken po, I can show!”
Or, depending on who you learned it from:
“Junk an’ a po, I canna show!”
And just like that, a game from Japan became part of growing up in Hawaiʻi.
Kids played it on playgrounds, at school and wherever a quick decision needed to be made. No coin? No problem. No referee? No problem. Just throw your hand and see who wins!
✊ Rock.
✋ Paper.
✌️ Scissors.
What makes the story especially fun is how the game changed as it traveled. It wasn't simply imported and left untouched. Generations of Hawaiʻi residents made it their own, blending the Japanese game with local language and culture. One account describes the Hawaiʻi version as a cultural hybrid, much like so many things that have become uniquely local.
So the next time somebody says, “Junk an’ a po!”, throw your hand, make your choice and remember:
You’re not just playing a childhood game. You’re playing a little piece of Hawaiʻi history.
Now… who’s going first?
Sometimes the smallest pieces of our childhood carry stories much bigger than we realize. Photo courtesy: Dropbotdean on Magnific
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