Samoa

By: Liliana Sandoval

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Samoan Culture
History: It’s thought that the first settlers
of the Samoan islands came there • Location: The Samoan Islands
around 3,500 years ago, migrating from are located in the South Pacific
other Polynesian islands. There they
lived in seclusion until around 1600 about 1,800 miles east of New
when missionaries came to the islands. Zealand and 2,400 miles
The missionaries brought the islanders southwest of Hawaii. The
Christianity as well as helping them to islands are split into two
invent their own alphabet. They lived
without much more intrusion until late in groups, east and west. The
the 1800’s, when Germany and the U.S. eastern islands are a United
began competing for control of the States territory, while the
Samoan islands. A treaty was signed
and the islands were split between the western islands are an
two countries. Germany lost control of independent country.
the western islands to New Zealand and
then in 1962 Western Samoa became
an independent country, while Eastern
Samoa still resides under U.S. control.
Western Samoa has retained their
traditional lifestyle, while Eastern or
American Samoa has become much
more industrial.
Am. Samoa dancing

• Samoan dance is possibly the one

area of Samoan culture which has
been least affected by contact with
western civilization. Whereas
Samoan music has adopted
guitars and other musical
instruments, dance, which relies
solely upon the performers body
(with some exceptions - fire
dance, knife dance, etc) still
requires the performer to retain
grace and move their arms and
hands in the approved fashion.
However, Samoans who are
members of the Seventh Day
Adventist church do not practice
Samoan dancing because it is
proscribed by their religion.
 Am. Samoa food

Food is a very important part of Samoan life. Wherever

and whenever Samoans travel they take food with them.
If you spend any time travelling in and around the Pacific
you will undoubtably come across the sight of Samoans
at airports carrying special boxes with the words 'Umu'
printed on the side. They are the equivalent of a take-
away, but more of these later. If they are travelling
farther afield to visit friends and relations in America or
Europe then you can be pretty certain that somewhere in
their luggage is a tin or two of Hellaby's corned beef.
 Pago pago beach

• Pago Pago is a rather seedy place with its small

presence being dominated by two large tuna
canning factories. Pollution of the stunning
harbour has recently been addressed and a
conscious National clear up campaign has
helped its image. The town retains its clapboard
buildings and red light district so romantically
written about by Somerset Maughan in his book
Rain.
 Samoan tattoo
• Traditional Samoan tattooing of the pe'a, body tattoo, is
an ordeal that is not lightly undergone. It takes many
weeks to complete, is very painful and used to be a
necessary prerequisite to receiving a matai title; this
however is no longer the case. Tattooing was also a very
costly procedure, the tattooer receiving in the region of
700 fine mats as payment. It was not uncommon for half
a dozen boys to be tattooed at the same time, requiring
the services of four or more tattooers. It was not just the
men who received tattoos, but the women too, although
their designs are of a much lighter nature, resembling a
filigree rather than having the large areas of solid dye
which are frequently seen in men's tattoos. Nor was the
tattooing of women as ritualised as that of them men
 Samoan houses

• The story of the Samoan House of

Worship begins in April of 1974
when the world governing body of
the Bahá'í Faith called for the
construction of a House of Worship
in what was then Western Samoa.
It was the first to be built in its area
of the world – the Mother Temple
of the Pacific Islands.
 Samoan language
• he language is a member of the Austronesian
family, and more specifically the Samoic branch
of the Polynesian subphylum. The Samoan
language has a 'polite' and formal variant used
in Samoan oratory and ceremony as well as in
communication with elders, guests, people of
rank and strangers.
Table of contents

1. Samoan Culture
2. Samoan Dancing
3. Samoan Food
4. Pago pago Beach
5. Samoan tattoo
6. Samoan Houses
7. Samoan Language