It occurred to me recently that Hawaii has special connections with many countries around the world that go beyond our residents’ places of origin.

Yes, many of us trace our roots to Polynesia, China, Japan, Korea, the Philippines, Portugal and other nations, but I was thinking of something greater than that.

For instance, I believe we were annexed by the United States in 1898 because of the Philippines. The United States found itself engaged in the Spanish-American War, which was chiefly fought in Cuba and the Philippines.

The United States had not been interested in annexing Hawaii before that, but in 1898, troops on their way to Manila camped at Kapiolani Park.

If not for the Spanish-American War, I believe, Hawaii would not have become a U.S. territory at that time, and possibly never.

A lesser connection to Cuba exists because Gen. William "Pecos Bill" Shafter commanded U.S. forces there. Weighing more than 300 pounds, Shafter found it difficult to keep up with his troops. A subordinate suggested inviting the Spanish to surrender. They were winning the war, but poor communications led them to think they were losing, and accepted.

Because of his efforts, Fort Shafter in Hawaii was named for him in 1907.

England and Hawaii are tied because of Captain Cook, the first European to bring Hawaii to the world’s attention. He named us the Sandwich Islands, after his benefactor, the Fourth Earl of Sandwich. It’s a term that one still hears today on occasion.

Many of our kings and queens were close to Queen Victoria in England, and several visited, including Kamehameha II and Queen Kamamalu, who died there.

Kamehameha IV and Queen Emma visited Queen Victoria and asked her support in creating schools in Hawaii. The result was St. Andrew’s Priory School and ‘Iolani School.

Many of our Victorias — Kaiulani, Kamamalu and Ward — were likely named for Queen Victoria. Duke 

Kahanamoku was named after the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Alfred, Queen Victoria’s second son, who visited Hawaii in 1869.

Alexander Liholiho, who became Kamehameha IV, saw the great celebration of Christmas in England and made it a holiday here when he became king.

King Kamehameha I liked the Union Jack, and today the Hawaiian flag contains it. It is made up of the crosses of three saints — Andrew of Scotland, George of England and Patrick of Ireland.

The Spanish may have discovered Hawaii a century earlier than Cook, many suspect, but kept it a secret.

France has a Hawaii connection I’m aware of. The statue of Kamehameha on King Street was cast in Paris and erected there for the public to see before making its way to Hawaii. On the way, it was shipwrecked in the Falkland Islands, salvaged and erected in Port Stanley for a few months before being sent to Hawaii.

King Louis IX of France is the namesake of Saint Louis School in Hawaii. He died leading his second crusade.

Japan will always have a special connection to Hawaii because of the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor. But 60 years earlier, King Kalakaua visited Japan and met with Emperor Meiji. He proposed an alliance between two island nations and offered Princess Kaiulani’s hand in marriage to a royal prince to seal the deal.

King David Kalakaua visited several other countries on his around-the-world tour in 1881, including England, India, Egypt, Thailand, Italy, Germany, Spain, Portugal, Burma and Belgium.

China and Hawaii have an interesting relationship because of Dr. Sun Yat-sen, who came to Hawaii and attended ‘Iolani School and Punahou. Sun led the overthrow of the Qing Dynasty and served as provisional president of the Republic of China in 1912.

Russia wanted to take over Hawaii around 1815 and built two forts here. One was in Waimea on Kauai, and the other in downtown Honolulu. Fort Street led to it and was Hawaii’s first paved road in the 1890s.

I’m working on another story that connects Hawaii to Russia. Henry Walker Sr., who was later president of Amfac, Star-Bulletin Editor Riley Allen, W.D. Baldwin and a dozen other Hawaii Red Cross volunteers went to Siberia in 1918 to help World War I refugees.

Peru and Hawaii are tied together because of Hiram Bingham III. Bingham was born in Honolulu in 1875, the grandson of the founder of Kawaiaha’o Church and Punahou School. Bingham became an archeologist and brought Machu Picchu to the world’s attention after discovering it in 1911.

Bingham wrote the book "Lost City of the Incas" and, some say, was one of the inspirations for the fictional character "Indiana Jones."

Hawaiian musicians in the 1960s found an appreciative audience in Puerto Rico. TeMoana Makolo told me she worked at the Lexington Hotel Hawaiian Room in New York from 1962 to 1966.

Then she performed in Puerto Rico hotels for seven months. "At the time, the top three shows in Puerto Rico were us (we called ourselves TeMoana and the Aloha Islanders), Dick Jensen, my classmate from Farrington High School, and the Echoes, now called S.O.S. I found it interesting that the top-selling shows in Puerto Rico were Hawaiian.

"We’d walk down the street and everybody in Puerto Rico knew us. The construction guys would shout ‘hula, hula’ to us. It was amazing."

Maybe my readers can think of other countries with an interesting Hawaii connection.

Bob Sigall, author of the “Companies We Keep” books, looks through his collection of old photos to tell stories each Friday of Hawaii people, places and companies. Email him at Sigall@yahoo.com.