Samoa
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{{about|the state|the archipelago|Samoan Islands}}
{{Infobox Country
| native_name = ''Malo Sa'oloto Tuto'atasi o Samoa''<br>Independent State of Samoa
| common_name = Samoa
| image_flag = Flag of Samoa.svg
| image_coat = Coat of Arms of Samoa.svg
| symbol_type = Coat of arms
| image_map = LocationSamoa.png
| national_motto = ''Fa'avae i le Atua Samoa''<br>([[Samoan language|Samoan]]: "Samoa is founded on God")<ref name="DB">{{cite news | first= | last= | coauthors= | title=Samoa an Overview | url =http://www.donbosco.asn.au/Bulletins/2004/mar/overview.htm | work =donbosco.asn.au | pages = | accessdate = 2007-11-26 | language = }}</ref>
| national_anthem = ''[[The Banner of Freedom]]''
| official_languages = [[Samoan language|Samoan]], [[English language|English]]
| demonym = [[Samoans|Samoan]]
| capital = [[Apia, Samoa|Apia]]
| latd = 13
| latm = 50
| latNS = S
| longd = 171
| longm = 45
| longEW = W
| largest_city = [[Apia, Samoa|Apia]]
| government_type = [[Parliamentary republic]]
| leader_title1 = [[O le Ao o le Malo]]
| leader_name1 = [[Tufuga Efi]]
| leader_title2 = [[Prime Minister of Samoa|Prime Minister]]
| leader_name2 = [[Tuilaepa Aiono Sailele Malielegaoi]]
| area_rank = 174th
| area_magnitude =
| area_km2 = 2,831
| area_sq_mi = 1093
| percent_water = 0.3%
| population_estimate = 214,265
| population_estimate_rank = 185th
| population_estimate_year = July 2007
| population_census =
| population_census_year =
| population_density_km2 = 65
| population_density_sq_mi = 169
| population_density_rank = 126th
| GDP_PPP = $1.218 billion
| GDP_PPP_rank = 166th
| GDP_PPP_year = 2006
| GDP_PPP_per_capita = $6,344
| GDP_PPP_per_capita_rank = 94th
| sovereignty_type = Independence
| sovereignty_note = from [[New Zealand]]
| established_event1 = Date
| established_date1 = [[01 January]] [[1962]]
| HDI = {{increase}}0.785
| HDI_rank = 77th
| HDI_year = 2007
| HDI_category = <font color=#FFCC00>medium</font>
| currency = [[Samoan tala|Tala]]
| currency_code = WST
| country_code =
| time_zone =
| utc_offset = -11
| time_zone_DST =
| DST_note =
| utc_offset_DST =
| cctld = [[.ws]]
| calling_code = 685
| footnotes =
}}
'''Samoa''', officially the '''Independent State of Samoa''', is a country governing the western part of the [[Samoan Islands]] [[archipelago]] in the South [[Pacific Ocean]]. [[Geographical renaming|Previous names]] were ''' Samoa''' from 1900 to 1919, and '''Western Samoa''' from 1914 to 1997. It was admitted to the [[United Nations]] on [[15 December]] [[1976]].<ref name="UN">{{cite news | title=List of Member States: S | url =http://www.un.org/members/list.shtml | work =United Nations | accessdate = 2007-11-27}}</ref> The entire [[island group]], inclusive of [[American Samoa]], was known as '''Navigators Islands''' before the 20th century because of the Samoans' seafaring skills.<ref name="CC">{{cite news | first= | last= | coauthors= | title=Samoa - The Heart of Polynesia | date= | publisher= | url =http://www.polynesia.com/samoa/island-map.html | work =Polynesian Culture Center | pages = | accessdate = 2007-11-26 | language = }}</ref>
== History ==
{{main|History of Samoa}}
Contact with [[Europe]]ans began in the early 18th century. [[Jacob Roggeveen]], a Dutchman, was the first European to sight the Samoan islands in 1722. This visit was followed by a French Explorer by the name of [[Louis-Antoine de Bougainville]], the man who named them the ''Navigator Islands'' in 1768. Contact was limited before the 1830s which is when [[England|English]] [[missionaries]] and traders began arriving. Mission work in Samoa had begun in late 1830 by [[John Williams (missionary)|John Williams]], of the [[London Missionary Society]].<ref>{{cite book | last = Watson | first = R.M. | title = History of Samoa: THE ADVENT OF THE MISSIONARY. (1830.1839) | date = 1918 | location = | pages = Chapter III | url =http://www.samoa.co.uk/books/history-of-samoa/history-of-samoa-3.html}}</ref> By that time, the Samoans had gained a reputation of being savage and warlike, as they had clashed with French, British, German and American forces, who, by the late nineteenth century, valued Samoa as a refueling station for coal-fired shipping.
As the Germans began to show more interest in the Samoan Islands, the United States laid its own claim to them. Britain also sent troops to express its interest. There followed an [[Samoan Civil War|eight-year civil war]], where each of the three powers supplied arms, training, and in some cases combat troops, to the warring Samoan parties. All three sent warships into Apia harbor, and a larger-scale war seemed imminent, until a massive storm damaged or destroyed the warships, ending the military conflict.<ref>{{cite book |author=Stevenson, Robert Louis |title=A Footnote to History: Eight Years of Trouble in Samoa |publisher=BiblioBazaar |isbn=1-4264-0754-8}}</ref> At the turn of the twentieth century, the [[Treaty of Berlin, 1899|Treaty of Berlin]] split the [[Samoan Islands]] into two parts: the eastern group became a territory of the [[United States]] (the Tutuila Islands in 1900 and officially Manu'a in 1905),<ref>{{cite news | title=Annexation of Samoa | url =http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/ops/samoa-1899.htm | work =GlobalSecurity.org | accessdate = 2007-11-27}}</ref> and are today known as [[American Samoa]]; the western islands, by far the greater landmass, became known as [[German Samoa]] after the British gave up claims to the islands in return for [[Fiji]] and some Melanesian territories.<ref>{{cite journal |author= Josiah Crosby |title= The Future of Western Samoa |journal= International Affairs |volume= 24|issue= 1|pages= 89–99|year= 1948|doi= 10.2307/3016954}}</ref> The first German Governor was [[Wilhelm Solf]] who later went on to become Secretary for the Colonies of Imperial Germany. [[New Zealand]] troops landed in 'Upolu on August 29, 1914 and seized control from the German authorities, following a request by Britain that New Zealand forces take over a German radio station there.<ref>{{cite news | first= | last= | coauthors= | title= New Zealand goes to war: The Capture of German Samoa | date= | publisher= | url =http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/war/new-zealand-goes-to-war-first-world-war | work =nzhistory.net.nz | pages = | accessdate = 2007-11-27 | language = }}</ref>
From the end of [[World War I]] until 1962, New Zealand controlled Samoa as a Class "C" Mandate under [[trusteeship]] through the [[League of Nations]].<ref>{{cite news | title=Imperialism as a Vocation: Class C Mandates | url =http://www.jamesrmaclean.com/archives/archive_vocational_imperialism.html | accessdate = 2007-11-27}}</ref> There followed a series of New Zealand administrators who were responsible for two major incidents. In the first incident, approximately one fifth of the Samoan population died in the Influenza epidemic of 1918-1919.<ref>{{cite news | title=The 1918 flu pandemic | url =http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/culture/influenza-pandemic | work =NZHistory.net.nz | accessdate = 2007-11-26}}</ref> In 1919 The Royal Commission of Inquiry into the Epidemic concluded that there had been no epidemic of pneumonic influenza in Western Samoa before the arrival of the 'Tahune' from Auckland on the 7th November, 1918 [which was allowed to berth by the NZ administration in breach of quarantine]; that within seven days of this ship's arrival pneumonic influenza had become epidemic in Upolu and had then spread rapidly throughout the rest of the territory.<ref>{{cite article | title=Guardians and Wards: (A study of the origins, causes, and the first two years of the Mau in Western Samoa.) | url =http://www.nzetc.org/tm/scholarly/tei-WenGua-c2.html | author = Albert Wendt }}</ref>
[[Image:Funeral of Tamesese.jpg|thumb|left|People in attendance at Tupua Tamesese's funeral.]]
The second major incident arose out of an initially peaceful protest by the ''[[Mau movement|Mau]]'' (literally translates as "Strongly held Opinion"), a non-violent popular movement which arose in the early 1920s to protest the mistreatment of the Samoan people by the New Zealand administration. The Mau was initially lead by [[Olaf Frederick Nelson|Olaf Nelson]], who was half Samoan and half Swedish.<ref>{{cite news | title=Nelson, Olaf Frederick 1883 - 1944 | url =http://www.dnzb.govt.nz/dnzb/default.asp?Find_Quick.asp?PersonEssay=4N5 | work = Dictionary of New Zealand Biography | accessdate = 2007-11-27}}</ref> Nelson was eventually [[exile]]d during the late 1920s and early 1930s but he continued to assist the organization financially and politically. In following the Mau's non-violent philosophy, the newly elected leader, High Chief Tupua Tamasese Lealofi, led his fellow uniformed Mau in a peaceful demonstration in downtown Apia on [[December 28]] [[1929]].<ref>{{cite news | title=The Mau Movement | url =http://www.globaled.org.nz/comm/documents/GlobalBits_Parihaka_000.pdf | accessdate = 2007-11-27}}</ref> The New Zealand police attempted to arrest one of the leaders in the demonstration. When he resisted, a struggle developed between the police and the Mau. The officers began to fire randomly into the crowd and a [[Lewis machine gun]], mounted in preparation for this demonstration, was used to disperse the Mau.<ref>{{cite book |author=Field, Michael |title=Black Saturday: New Zealand's tragic blunders in Samoa |publisher=Reed Publishing (NZ) |location=Auckland, N.Z. |year=2006 |pages= |isbn=0790011034}}</ref> Chief Tamasese was shot from behind and killed while trying to bring calm and order to the Mau demonstrators, screaming "Peace, Samoa". Ten others died that day and approximately 50 were injured by gunshot wounds and police batons.<ref>{{cite news | title=History and migration: Who are the Samoans? | url =http://www.teara.govt.nz/NewZealanders/NewZealandPeoples/Samoans/1/en | work =Ministry for Culture and Heritage / Te Manatū Taonga | accessdate = 2007-11-27}}</ref> That day would come to be known in Samoa as Black Saturday. The Mau grew, remaining steadfastly non-violent, and expanded to include a highly influential women's branch. After repeated efforts by the Samoan people, Western Samoa gained independence in 1962 and signed a Friendship Treaty with New Zealand. Samoa was the second or third Pacific Island country to become independent, after New Zealand and arguably Tonga.
In 2002, New Zealand's [[prime minister]] [[Helen Clark]], on a trip to Samoa, formally apologised for New Zealand's role in these two incidents.<ref>{{cite web | title =New Zealand's apology to Samoa | url =http://www.michaelfield.org/mauapology.htm}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title =Prime Minister Helen Clark's Historic Apology | url =http://192.54.242.122/details.php?table=doc_primary&id=164}}</ref>
In July 1997, the constitution was amended to change the country's name from ''Western Samoa'' to ''Samoa'',<ref>{{cite news | first= | last= | coauthors= | title=Constitution Amendment Act (No 2) 1997 | date= | publisher= | url =http://www.paclii.org/ws/legis/num_act/caa21997295/ | work = | pages = | accessdate = 2007-11-27 | language = }}</ref> as it had been designated by the [[United Nations]] since joining the organization in 1976.<ref name="UN"/> The U.S. territory of [[American Samoa]] protested the move, asserting that the change diminished its own identity. American Samoans still use the terms ''Western Samoa'' and ''Western Samoans'' to describe the independent State of Samoa and its inhabitants. While the two Samoas share language and ethnicity, their cultures have recently followed different paths, with American Samoans often emigrating to [[Hawaii|Hawai{{okina}}i]] and the U.S. mainland, and adopting many U.S. customs, such as the playing of [[American football]] and [[baseball]]. Western Samoans have tended to emigrate instead to New Zealand, whose influence has made the sports of [[rugby football|rugby]] and [[cricket]] more popular in the western islands. Travel writer [[Paul Theroux]] noted that there were marked differences between the societies in Samoa and American Samoa. In Samoa the inhabitants, although poorer in terms of material wealth, were more content and retained a keen sense of Samoan identity, while American Samoans retained only the rhetoric of ethnic identity and in reality had sublimated their culture to western norms.
== Politics==
{{Politics of Samoa}}
{{main|Politics of Samoa}}
The 1960 [[Constitution]], which formally came into force with independence, is based on the British pattern of [[parliamentary democracy]], modified to take account of Samoan customs.<ref name="DS">{{cite news | title= Background Note: Samoa | url =http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/1842.htm | work =U.S. State Department | accessdate = 2007-11-26}}</ref> Two of Samoa's four princely titles (paramount chiefs) at the time of independence were given lifetime appointments to jointly hold the office of head of state. [[Malietoa Tanumafili II]] had held this post alone since the death of his colleague ([[Tupua Tamasese Mea'ole]]) in 1963. [[Malietoa Tanumafili II]] died 11 May 2007. He was the oldest living monarch at the time of his death. His successor, [[Tuiatua Tupua Tamasese Efi]] was selected by the legislature on the 17 June 2007 for a 5-year term.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/2/story.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10446128 | title=New head of state for Samoa | author=[[New Zealand Herald]]| accessdate=2007-06-16}}</ref>
[[Image:Samoa - Apia Govt buildings.jpg|thumb|left|Government buildings in Apia.]]
The unicameral legislature ([[Fono]]) consists of 49 members serving 5-year terms. Forty-seven are elected from territorial districts by ethnic Samoans; the other two are chosen by non-Samoans with no chiefly affiliation on separate electoral rolls.<ref>{{cite news | title=Samoa: Key Facts: Political | url =http://www.mfat.govt.nz/Countries/Pacific/Samoa.php | work =New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Trade | accessdate = 2007-11-27}}</ref> Universal suffrage was extended in 1990, but only chiefs (matai) may stand for election to the Samoan seats. There are more than 25,000 matais in the country, about 5% of whom are women.<ref>{{cite news | title=Samoa: Country Reports on Human Rights Practices in 2006 | url =http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2006/78789.htm | work =U.S. Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor | accessdate = 2007-11-27}}</ref> The prime minister is chosen by a majority in the Fono and is appointed by the head of state to form a government. The prime minister's choices for the 12 cabinet positions are appointed by the head of state, subject to the continuing confidence of the Fono.
The judicial system is based on English common law and local customs. The [[Supreme Court of Samoa]] is the court of highest jurisdiction. Its chief justice is appointed by the head of state upon the recommendation of the prime minister.
==Political Districts==
{{main|Districts of Samoa}}
Samoa is made up of eleven ''itūmālō'' (political districts). These are the traditional eleven districts that were established well before European arrival. Each district has its own constitutional foundation (faavae) based on the traditional order of title precedence found in each district's faalupega (traditional salutations).
The capital village of each district administers and coordinates the affairs of the district and confers each districts' paramount title, amongst other responsibilities. For example, the District of A'ana has its capital at Leulumoega. The paramount title of A'ana is the TuiA'ana. The orator group which confers this title - the Faleiva (House of Nine) - is based at Leulumoega. This is also the same for the other districts. In the district of Tuamasaga, the paramount title of the district - The Malietoa title - is conferred by the FaleTuamasaga based in Afega.
[[Image:Samoa districts numbered2.png|right|thumb|320px|Political Districts of Samoa]]
<table><td><ol>
'''[[Upolu]]''' (including minor islands)
<li>[[Tuamasaga]] ([[Afega]])
<li>[[A'ana]] ([[Leulumoega]])
<li>[[Aiga-i-le-Tai]] ([[Mulifanua]])<sup>1</sup>
<li>[[Atua (district)|Atua]] (Lufilufi)<sup>2</sup>
<li>[[Va'a-o-Fonoti]] (Samamea)
</td></ol><td><ol start=6>
*''' [[Savai'i]]'''
<li>[[Fa'asaleleaga]] (Safotulafai)
<li>[[Gaga'emauga]] (Saleaula)<sup>3</sup>
<li>[[Gaga'ifomauga]] (Safotu)
<li>[[Vaisigano]]
<li>[[Satupa'itea]] ([[Satupa'itea]])
<li>[[Palauli]] (Vailoa i Palauli)
</ol></td></table>
<sup>1</sup> <small>including islands [[Manono Island|Manono]], [[Apolima]] and [[Nu'ulopa]]</small>
<br><sup>2</sup> <small>including the [[Aleipata Islands]] and [[Nu'usafe'e]] Island</small>
<br><sup>3</sup> <small>smaller parts also on [[Upolu]] (Salamumu (incl. Salamumu-Utu) and Leauvaa villages)</small>
== Geography ==
[[Image:Samoa Country map.png|thumb|left|Map of Samoa]]
The country is located east of the [[International Date Line|international date line]] and south of the equator, about halfway between [[Hawai‘i]] and [[New Zealand]] in the [[Polynesia]]n region of the Pacific Ocean. The total land area is 2934 km² (slightly smaller than the U.S. state of [[Rhode Island]]), consisting of the two large islands of [[Upolu]] and [[Savai'i]] which account for 99% of the total land area, and eight small islets: the three islets in the [[Apolima Strait]] ([[Manono Island]], [[Apolima]] and [[Nu'ulopa]]), the four [[Aleipata Islands]] off the eastern end of [[Upolu]] ([[Nu'utele]], [[Nu'ulua]], [[Namua]], and [[Fanuatapu]]), and [[Nu'usafe'e]] (less than 0.01 km² in area and about 1.4 km off the south coast of [[Upolu]] at the village of ''Vaovai'').<ref name="DB"/> The main island of Upolu is home to nearly three-quarters of Samoa's population, and its capital city is [[Apia, Samoa|Apia]]. The climate is tropical, with an average annual temperature of 26.5 °C, and a rainy season from November to April.<ref>{{cite news | title=Smaoa: Climate | url =http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-54101/Samoa | work =Encyclopædia Britannica| accessdate = 2007-11-26}}</ref> Savai'i is the largest of the Samoan islands and the third largest Polynesian Island after Tahiti and New Zealand. The population of Savali'i is 42,000 people.
==Geology==
The Samoan islands have been produced by volcanism, the source of which is a geologic [[hotspot]] which is the probable result of a [[mantle plume]].<ref>{{cite journal
| quotes =
| last = Koppers
| first = Anthony A.P.
| authorlink =
| coauthors = Russell, Jackson, Konter, Staudigel, and Hart
| date =
| year = 2008
| month = June
| title = Samoa reinstated as a primary hotspot trail
| journal = [[Geology (journal)|Geology]]
| volume = 36
| issue = 6
| pages = 435–438
| publisher = The Geological Society of America
| location =
| pmc =
| doi = 10.1130/G24630A.1
| bibcode =
| oclc =
| id =
| url =
| language =
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}}
</ref><ref>[http://www.geosociety.org/news/pr/08-23.htm GSA Press Release - GEOLOGY/GSA Today Media Highlights<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> While all of the islands have volcanic origins, only Savai'i has had recent eruptions and could be considered volcanically active. The last major eruption occurred in the 1700s, and smaller eruptions occurred between 1904–1906. The highest point in Samoa is Mauga Silisili, at 1858 m. The Saleaula Lava Fields were produced by Mt. Matavanu during its eruption 102 years ago leaving 52 square kilometres of solidified lava. {{Fact|date=July 2008}}
== Economy ==
{{main|Economy of Samoa}}
[[Image:Colocasia esculenta dsc07801.jpg|thumb|right|[[Taro]], a root crop, traditionally was Samoa's largest export, generating more than half of all export revenue in 1993. But a fungal blight decimated the plants, and in each year since 1994 taro exports have accounted for less than 1% of export revenue.]]
The economy of Samoa has traditionally been dependent on [[development aid]], private family [[remittances from overseas]], and [[agricultural exports]]. [[Agriculture]] employs two-thirds of the labor force, and furnishes 90% of [[export]]s, featuring [[coconut]] cream, [[coconut oil]], [[noni]] (juice of the ''nonu'' fruit, as it is known in Samoan), and [[copra]].<ref>{{cite news | first= | last= | coauthors= | title=Samoa: Economy | date= | publisher= | url =https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ws.html#Econ | work =CIA World Factbook | pages = | accessdate = 2007-11-26 | language = }}</ref> Outside of a large automotive wire-harness factory (Yazaki Corporation), the manufacturing sector mainly processes agricultural products. [[Tourism]] is an expanding sector which now accounts for 25% of GDP. Tourist arrivals have been increasing over the years with more than 100,000 tourists visiting the islands in 2005, up from 70,000 in 1996. The Samoan government has called for deregulation of the financial sector, encouragement of investment, and continued fiscal discipline. Observers point to the flexibility of the labor market as a basic strength for future economic advances. The sector has been helped enormously by major capital investment in hotel infrastructure, political instability in neighboring [[Pacific]] countries, and the 2005 launch of [[Polynesian Blue]] a joint-venture between the government and Virgin Airlines.
Samoa is a fertile, fruitful, productive island. In the period before [[Germany|German]] colonization, it produced mostly [[copra]]. German merchants and settlers were active in introducing large scale [[plantation]] operations and developing new industries, notably [[cocoa]] and rubber, relying on imported laborers from [[China]] and [[Melanesia]]. When the value of natural rubber fell drastically, about the end of the Great War ([[World War I]]), the [[New Zealand]] government encouraged the production of [[banana]]s, for which there is a large market in New Zealand.
Because of variations in altitude, a large range of [[tropical]] and [[subtropical]] crops can be cultivated, but land is not generally available to outside interests. Of the total land area of 2,934 km² (725,000 acres), about 24.4% is in permanent crops and another 21.2% is arable. About 4.4% is Western Samoan Trust Estates Corporation (WSTEC).
The staple products of Samoa are [[copra]] (dried coconut meat), [[cocoa]] (for chocolate), and bananas. The annual production of both bananas and copra has been in the range of 13,000 to 15,000 metric tons. If the [[rhinoceros beetle]] in Samoa were eradicated, Samoa could produce in excess of 40,000 metric tons of copra. Cocoa is of very high quality and used in fine New Zealand chocolates. Most cocoa trees are Criollo-Forastero hybrids. Coffee grows well, but production has been uneven. WSTEC is the biggest coffee producer. Rubber has been produced in Samoa for many years, but its export value has little impact on the economy.
Other agricultural industries have been less successful. [[Sugarcane]] production, originally established by Germans in the early 20th century, could be successful. Old train tracks for transporting cane can be seen at some plantations east of [[Apia]]. [[Pineapple]]s grow well in Samoa, but beyond local consumption have not been a major export.
===Components of the economy===
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in [[purchasing power parity]] (PPP) in 2006 was estimated at $1.218 billion USD. {{Fact|date=May 2008}} The industrial sector is the largest component of GDP at 58.4%, followed by the services sector at 30.2% (2004 est.). Agriculture represents only 11.4% of GDP (2004 est.). Samoan labor force is estimated at 90,000. {{Fact|date=May 2008}}
== Demographics ==
[[Image:Samoa Familie.JPG|thumb|right|A Samoan family.]]
{{main|Demographics of Samoa}}
According to the [[The World Factbook|CIA World Factbook]], Samoa has a population of 214,265 of which 92.6% are [[Samoans]], 7% Euronesians (persons of European and [[Polynesian]] blood) and 0.4% are [[European ethnic groups|Europeans]]. About three-quarters of the population live on the main island of [[Upolu]].<ref name="DS"/> Only the [[Māori]] of [[New Zealand]] outnumber Samoans among Polynesian groups, but a larger portion of Māori identify with more than one ethnic group.
Roughly 98% of Samoans are [[Christians]], divided among many different churches, including: [[Congregationalist]] 35.5%, [[Roman Catholic]] 19.6%, [[Methodist]] 15%, [[Latter-Day Saint]]s 12.7%, [[Assembly of God]] 6.6%, [[Seventh-day Adventist Church|Seventh-day Adventist]] 3.5%, other Christian 4.0%, Worship Centre 1.3%, unspecified 0.8% (2001 census).<ref>{{cite news | title=Samoa: People; Religions| url =https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ws.html#People | work =CIA World Factbook | accessdate = 2007-11-26}}</ref> The Head of State until 2007, His Highness [[Malietoa Tanumafili II of Samoa|Malietoa Tanumafili II]], was a [[Bahá'í Faith|Bahá'í]] convert. Samoa hosts one of seven [[Bahá'í House of Worship|Bahá'í Houses of Worship]] in the world; completed in 1984 and dedicated by the Head of State, it is located in [[Tiapapata]], 8 km from [[Apia]].
== Culture ==
[[Image:Catholic church in Samoa.jpg|right|thumb|A Catholic church in Samoa.]]
{{main|Culture of Samoa}}{{seealso|Music of Samoa}}
The [[fa'a Samoa]], or traditional Samoan way, remains a strong force in Samoan life and politics. Despite centuries of European influence, Samoa maintains its historical customs, social and political systems, and [[Samoan language|language]]. Samoans are deeply spiritual and religious people, and have subtly adapted the dominant religion of Christianity to 'fit in' with fa'a Samoa and vice versa. As such, ancient beliefs continue to co-exist side-by-side with Christianity, particularly in regard to the traditional customs and rituals of fa'a Samoa.
Samoans had gods of their own, as their mythological story of creation tells. The Samoan culture is centered around the principle of vāfealoa'i, the relationships between people. These relationships are based on respect, or [[fa'aaloalo]]. When Christianity was introduced in Samoa, most Samoan people converted. Currently 98% of the population identify themselves as Christian. The other 2 percent either identify themselves as irreligious, or do not belong to any congregation.
The Samoans have a communal way of life with little privacy. They do almost all their activities collectively. An example of this are the traditional Samoan ''[[Beach fale|fales]]'' (houses) which are open with no walls, using blinds made of coconut palm fronds during the night or bad weather.
[[Image:Samoan Malu.jpg|right|thumb|A Samoan woman with a traditional malu.]]
As with many Polynesian islands with significant and unique tattoos, Samoans have two gender specific and culturally significant tattoos. For males, it is called the [[tatau (tattoo)|tatau]] and consists of intricate and geometrical patterns [[tattoo]]ed that cover areas from the knees up towards the ribs. A male who possesses such a tatau is called a [[soga'imiti]]. A Samoan girl or ''teine'' is given a [[malu]], which covers the area from just below her knees to her upper thighs.<ref>{{cite news | title= Worn With Pride > Tatau (Tatoo)| url =http://www.oma-online.org/worn_with_pride_04.html | work =Oceanside Museum of Art | accessdate = 2007-11-26}}</ref>
The traditional Samoan [[dance]] is the Siva. This dance is similar to the Hawaiian [[hula]], with gentle movements of the hands and feet in time to music and which tells a story, although the Samoan male dances are more aggressive and snappy.<ref>{{cite news | title=Dance: Siva | url =http://www.samoa.co.uk/dance.html | work =Samoa.co.uk | pages = | accessdate = 2007-11-26}}</ref> The "Sasa" is also a traditional Samoan dance, in which rows of dancers perform rapid [[synchronization|synchronised]] movements in time to [[drum]]s tins, or rolled mats. Its name originates from the [[Samoan language|Samoan]] word for "[[slap]]"; hence the Samoan "slap dance," which is accomplished by slapping different parts of the body. This was originally derived from slapping [[insect]]s on the body and later became a form of dance.
According to Katerina Martina Teaiwa, PhD from the University of Hawai'i at Manoa, “Hip hop culture in particular is popular amongst Samoan youth.” <ref>[http://www.piccom.org/dancesoflife/samoa.html Dances of Life | American Samoa<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>
This is not surprising considering the large amounts of migration between Samoa, Hawaii, and the United States mainland, specifically California. In addition, the integration of hip hop elements into Samoan tradition also “testifies to the transferability of the dance forms themselves,” and to the “circuits through which people and all their embodied knowledge travel.” <ref> Henderson, April K. “Dancing Between Islands: Hip Hop and the Samoan Diaspora.” In The Vinyl Ain’t Final: Hip Hop and the Globalization of Black Popular Culture, ed. by Dipannita Basu and Sidney J. Lemelle, 180-199. London; Ann Arbor, MI: Pluto Press, 2000 </ref> Dance both in its traditional form and its more modern forms has remained a central cultural currency to Samoans, especially youths. Teaiwa ends her article saying that the popularity of hip hop “is not necessarily oppositional to Samoan culture,” and has rather been integrated into the “solid family structure that looks far from disappearing in the face of increasing modernity.” <ref>[http://www.piccom.org/dancesoflife/samoa.html Dances of Life | American Samoa<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>
== Sport ==
{{see also|Sport in Samoa}}
The main sports played in Samoa are [[rugby league]], [[rugby union]] and [[Samoan cricket]]. About 30 ethnic Samoans, many from American Samoa, currently play in the [[National Football League]]. A 2002 article from ESPN estimated that a Samoan male (either an American Samoan, or a Samoan living in mainland United States) is 40 times more likely to play in the NFL than a non-Samoan American.<ref>{{cite news | title=American football, Samoan style | url =http://espn.go.com/gen/s/2002/0527/1387562.html | work =ESPN | accessdate = 2007-11-26}}</ref>
[[Image:Percy Montgomery against Samoa.jpg|thumb|left|Samoa (blue) vs. South Africa at the [[2007 Rugby World Cup]].]]
Rugby union is very popular in Samoa and the [[Samoa national rugby union team|national team]] nicknamed the Manu Samoa, is consistently competitive against teams from vastly more populous nations. Samoa have competed at every [[Rugby World Cup]] since [[1991 Rugby World Cup|1991]], and have made the quarter finals in 1991 (where they beat Wales and came close to upsetting eventual world champions Australia), [[1995 Rugby World Cup|1995]] and the second round of the [[1999 Rugby World Cup|1999]] world cup.<ref>{{cite news| title=Rugby in Samoa | url =http://www.manusamoa.net/history.htm | work =ManuSamoa.net | accessdate = 2007-11-26}}</ref> At the 2003 world cup, Manu Samoa came close to beating eventual world champions, England. Samoa also played in the [[Pacific Nations Cup]] and the [[Pacific Tri-Nations]] The sport is governed by the [[Samoa Rugby Football Union]], who are members of the [[Pacific Islands Rugby Alliance]], and thus, also contribute to the international [[Pacific Islanders rugby union team]]. At club level there is the [[Samoa National Provincial Championship|National Provincial Championship]] and [[Pacific Rugby Cup]] Prominent Samoan players include [[Pat Lam]] and [[Brian Lima]]. In addition there are many Samoans that have played for or are playing for the [[All Blacks]].
Rugby league is also popular amongst Samoans, with Samoa reaching the quarter finals of the 2000 Rugby League World Cup. They also took home the cup at Wellington and the Hong Kong Rugby Sevens in 2007 - for which the Prime Minister of Samoa, also Chairman of the national rugby union, Tuila’epa Sa’ilele Malielegaoi, declared a national holiday. Many Samoans and New Zealanders or Australians of Samoan descent play in the Super League and National Leagues in Britain. Examples are Va'aiga Lealuga Tuigamala who represented the New Zealand All Blacks, then became the first million dollar player to be contract out to Rugby League to play for Wigan, then played Rugby Union for Newcastle Falcons before representing Samoa. Ta'ane Lavulavu of Workington Town, Maurie Fa'asavalu of St Helens and David Fatialofa of Whitehaven.
Samoans have been very visible in [[boxing]], [[kickboxing]] and [[sumo]]; some Samoan sumos have reached the highest rank of ''[[Makuuchi#Ōzeki|Ozeki]]'' and ''[[Makuuchi#Yokozuna|yokozuna]]''. Despite the relatively small population of the islands many Samoans and people of Samoan descent have reached high ranks in many professional sports leagues.
==See also==
*[[1889 Apia cyclone]]
*[[Transport in Samoa]]
==References==
{{reflist|2}}
==Further reading==
*Watson, RM, ''History of Samoa'' (Wellington, 1918)
* Schnee, Dr. Heinrich [former Deputy Governor of ''German Samoa'' and last Governor of [[German East Africa]]]. 1926. ''German Colonization, Past and Future—The Truth about the German Colonies.'' London: [[George Allen & Unwin]].
* Eustis, Nelson. [1979] 1980. ''Aggie Grey of Samoa.'' Adelaide, [[South Australia]]: Hobby Investments. ISBN 0-9595609-0-4.
*{{cite book |author=Stevenson, Robert Louis |title=A Footnote to History: Eight Years of Trouble in Samoa |publisher=BiblioBazaar |isbn=1-4264-0754-8}}
==External links==
{{portal|Samoa|Flag of Samoa.svg}}
{{sisterlinks}}
* [http://www.govt.ws/ Government of Samoa]
* [http://www.toasamoa.com/ Official Samoan National Rugby League Team Website ( Toa Samoa )]
* {{wikiatlas|Samoa}}
* {{wikia|world:Samoa|Samoa}}
* {{wikitravel}}
* {{dmoz|Regional/Oceania/Samoa}}
{{Polynesia}}
{{Countries and territories of Oceania}}
{{Austronesian-speaking}}
{{Former German colonies}}
{{Commonwealth of Nations}}
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