A Mother Hubbard dress is a long, wide, loose-fitting gown with long sleeves and a high neck. Intended to cover as much skin as possible, it was introduced by missionaries in Polynesia to "civilise" those whom they considered half-naked savages of the South Seas islands.
Although this Victorian remnant has disappeared elsewhere in the world, it is still worn by Pacific women, who have altered it into a gayer and lighter (less hot) garment, using cotton sheets, often printed in brightly coloured floral patterns.
In Hawaiʻi, it is called holokū.[1] There, a derivative, the muʻumuʻu, is highly similar, but without the yoke and train, and therefore even easier to make.[2]
In Tahiti, the name was ʻahu tua (empire dress, in a sense of colonial empire); now, ʻahu māmā rūʻau (grandmother's dress) is used.
In Samoa and Tonga, the design has taken on a two-piece form, with classic mother hubbard blouses (long, wide, loose-fitting with puffy sleeves) over ankle-length skirts, called "puletasi" and "puletaha," respectively.
In New Caledonia, these dresses are referred to as robes missions (Mission Dresses). New Caledonian women wear these dresses when playing their distinctive style of cricket.
In Papua New Guinea, the form of dress is known as meri blaus, which in Tok Pisin means women's blouse. It is considered formal local attire.
In India and much of South Asia, these dresses are referred to as Housecoats. Indian women wear these dresses as a convenient apparel at home, particularly around only the family members when they are not expecting company..
The author Somerset Maugham refers to this dress many times in his novels and short stories about the Pacific.