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73-515: Manu'a was the political centre of the Tui Manu’a Empire for many centuries, until the rise of the Tu'i Tonga maritime empire, which led to a shift in power from the eastern islands of Samoa to its western islands. All three islands are volcanic islands : volcanic remnants rising out of the sea 14° south of the equator. The islands are elevated and mountainous. In contrast to most places in the world,

146-517: A Fiji heavily indebted to foreign creditors to the United Kingdom. It became independent on 10 October 1970 and a republic on 28 September 1987. Fiji is classified as Melanesian and (less commonly) Polynesian. Beginning in the late 13th and early 14th centuries, Polynesians began to migrate in waves to New Zealand via their canoes , settling on both the North and South islands as well as

219-682: A Treaty of Friendship on 18 May 1900, when European settlers and rival Tongan chiefs tried to oust the second king. Within the British Empire , which posted no higher permanent representative on Tonga than a British Consul (1901–1970), Tonga formed part of the British Western Pacific Territories (under a High Commissioner who residing in Fiji ) from 1901 until 1952. Despite being under the protectorate, Tonga retained its monarchy without interruption. On June 4, 1970,

292-701: A change in the movements of the Pacific Plate in relation to the Indo-Australian Plate . The Pacific plate had previously been subducted under the Australian Plate . When that changed, it had the effect of uplifting the portion of the continent that is modern-day New Zealand. The convergent plate boundary that runs northwards from New Zealand's North Island is called the Kermadec-Tonga subduction zone . This subduction zone

365-563: A non- Polynesian language . Some of the Lau Islands to the southeast of Fiji have strong historic and cultural links with Tonga. However, in essence, Polynesia remains a cultural term referring to one of the three parts of Oceania (the others being Melanesia and Micronesia ). The following islands and island groups are either nations or overseas territories of former colonial powers. The residents are native Polynesians or contain archaeological evidence indicating Polynesian settlement in

438-514: A possibility that the early Lapita Austronesians were direct descendants of the early colonists of the Marianas (which preceded them by about 150 years), which is also supported by pottery evidence. The most eastern site for Lapita archaeological remains recovered so far is at Mulifanua on Upolu . The Mulifanua site, where 4,288 pottery shards have been found and studied, has a "true" age of c.  1000 BC based on radiocarbon dating and

511-733: A region within Polynesia and the categorization of these language groups by Green in 1966 helped to confirm that Polynesian settlement generally took place from west to east. There is a very distinct "East Polynesian" subgroup with many shared innovations not seen in other Polynesian languages. The Marquesas dialects are perhaps the source of the oldest Hawaiian speech which is overlaid by Tahitian-variety speech, as Hawaiian oral histories would suggest. The earliest varieties of New Zealand Maori speech may have had multiple sources from around central Eastern Polynesia, as Maori oral histories would suggest. The Cook Islands are made up of 15 islands comprising

584-662: A subset of the sea-migrating Austronesian people . Tracing Polynesian languages places their prehistoric origins in Island Melanesia , Maritime Southeast Asia , and ultimately, in Taiwan . Between about 3000 and 1000 BC, speakers of Austronesian languages spread from Taiwan into Maritime Southeast Asia . There are three theories regarding the spread of humans across the Pacific to Polynesia. These are outlined well by Kayser et al. (2000) and are as follows: In

657-629: A widespread Polynesian network or confederacy (or "empire") that was prehistorically ruled by the successive Tui Manuʻa dynasties. Manuan genealogies and religious oral literature also suggest that the Tui Manuʻa had long been one of the most prestigious and powerful paramount of Samoa. Oral history suggests that the Tui Manuʻa kings governed a confederacy of far-flung islands which included Fiji , Tonga as well as smaller western Pacific chiefdoms and Polynesian outliers such as Uvea , Futuna , Tokelau , and Tuvalu . Commerce and exchange routes between

730-457: Is a subregion of Oceania , made up of more than 1,000 islands scattered over the central and southern Pacific Ocean . The indigenous people who inhabit the islands of Polynesia are called Polynesians . They have many things in common, including linguistic relations , cultural practices , and traditional beliefs . In centuries past, they had a strong shared tradition of sailing and using stars to navigate at night. The term Polynésie

803-663: Is associated with the volcanism that gave rise to the Kermadec and Tongan islands. There is a transform fault that currently traverses New Zealand's South Island, known as the Alpine Fault . Zealandia's continental shelf has a total area of approximately 3,600,000 km (1,400,000 sq mi). The oldest rocks in Polynesia are found in New Zealand and are believed to be about 510 million years old. The oldest Polynesian rocks outside Zealandia are to be found in

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876-416: Is considered to have lasted roughly 1,000 years. The cause of this gap in voyaging is contentious among archaeologists with a number of competing theories presented including climate shifts, the need for the development of new voyaging techniques, and cultural shifts. After the long pause, dispersion of populations into central and eastern Polynesia began. Although the exact timing of when each island group

949-409: Is derived. This is due to new population being established by a very small number of individuals from a larger population which also causes a loss of genetic variation. Atholl Anderson wrote that analysis of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA, female) and Y chromosome (male) concluded that the ancestors of Polynesian women were Austronesians while those of Polynesian men were Papuans . Subsequently, it

1022-603: Is owned communally by Samoan families of Manuʻa. This includes the National Parks lands which are only leased to the US National Parks system for 50 years. Manu'a District is further divided into five counties. According to historical Samoan oral tradition, Manu'a was formerly the ruling center of a large Polynesian empire that included the entire Samoan archipelago, as well as other nearby islands, including Tonga and Fiji . The traditional capital of Manuʻa

1095-577: Is said in Samoan oratory to contain the origins of Samoan and Polynesian culture, and the genealogy of Polynesians east of Samoa is said to have originated in Manuʻa. In traditional belief the sun rises over Samoa at Saua on the island of Taʻū, where the coral reef is supposed to be always yellow from the sun, and it sets at Falealupo the westernmost village on the island of Savaiʻi in Samoa. This journey of

1168-469: Is the marker of Austronesian expansions. The high frequencies of mtDNA Haplogroup B in the Polynesians are the result of founder effect and represents the descendants of a few Austronesian females who intermixed with Papuan males. A genomic analysis of modern populations in Polynesia, published in 2021, provides a model of the direction and timing of Polynesian migrations from Samoa to the islands to

1241-639: Is the oldest site yet discovered in Polynesia. This is mirrored by a 2010 study also placing the beginning of the human archaeological sequences of Polynesia in Tonga at 900 BC. Within a mere three or four centuries, between 1300 and 900 BC, the Lapita archaeological culture spread 6,000 km further to the east from the Bismarck Archipelago, until reaching as far as Fiji , Tonga , and Samoa . A cultural divide began to develop between Fiji to

1314-678: Is the village of Taʻū, on the island of Taʻū . The sovereign of Manuʻa was the Tui Manu'a , This title was the progenitor of many of the high titles used in other parts of the Samoan Islands. Manuʻa was the only part of Samoa that was never subjected to Tongan rule, because both the Tongans and the Samoans regarded Manuʻa as having sacred status. The last Tui Manuʻa was Tuimanuʻa Elisara (sometimes written Tui Manuʻa Elisala ), who held

1387-912: Is thought that the Cook Islands were settled in two periods: the Tahitian Period, when the country was settled between 900 and 1300 AD, and the Maui Settlement, which occurred in 1600 AD, when a large contingent from Tahiti settled in Rarotonga, in the Takitumu district. The first contact between Europeans and the native inhabitants of the Cook Islands took place in 1595 with the arrival of Spanish explorer Álvaro de Mendaña in Pukapuka , who called it San Bernardo (Saint Bernard). A decade later, navigator Pedro Fernández de Quirós made

1460-666: The British Crown in 1836. In 1840, Royal Navy officer William Hobson and several Māori chiefs signed the Treaty of Waitangi , which transformed New Zealand into a colony of the British Empire and granting all Māori the status of British subjects. However, tensions between Pākehā settlers and the Māori over settler encroachment on Māori lands and disputes over land sales led to the New Zealand Wars (1845–1872) between

1533-656: The Chatham Islands . Over the course of several centuries, the Polynesian settlers formed distinct cultures that became known as the Māori on the New Zealand mainland, while those who settled in the Chatham Islands became the Moriori people . Beginning the 17th century, the arrival of Europeans to New Zealand drastically impacted Māori culture. Settlers from Europe (known as " Pākehā ") began to colonize New Zealand in

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1606-769: The German Empire and the United States. The German-controlled Western portion of Samoa (consisting of the bulk of Samoan territory – Savaiʻi, Apolima, Manono and Upolu) was occupied by New Zealand in WWI, and administered by it under a Class C League of Nations mandate . After repeated efforts by the Samoan independence movement, the New Zealand Western Samoa Act of 24 November 1961 granted Samoa independence, effective on January 1, 1962, upon which

1679-563: The Kingdom of Tonga became independent from the British Empire. The reef islands and atolls of Tuvalu are identified as being part of West Polynesia. During pre-European-contact times there was frequent canoe voyaging between the islands as Polynesian navigation skills are recognised to have allowed deliberate journeys on double-hull sailing canoes or outrigger canoes . Eight of the nine islands of Tuvalu were inhabited; thus

1752-593: The Solomon Islands . The Tongan influence brought Polynesian customs and language throughout most of Polynesia. The empire began to decline in the 13th century. After a bloody civil war, political power in Tonga eventually fell under the Tuʻi Kanokupolu dynasty in the 16th century. In 1845, the ambitious young warrior, strategist, and orator Tāufaʻāhau united Tonga into a more Western-style kingdom. He held

1825-460: The Tovata confederacy of Fiji. This is where most Fijian-Polynesian linguistic interactions occurred. In the chronology of the exploration and first populating of Polynesia, there is a gap commonly referred to as the long pause between the first populating of Fiji ( Melanesia ), Western Polynesia of Tonga and Samoa among others and the settlement of the rest of the region. In general this gap

1898-525: The colonial government and the Māori. In response to the conflict, the colonial government initiated a series of land confiscations from the Māori. This social upheaval, combined with epidemics of infectious diseases from Europe, devastated both the Māori population and their social standing in New Zealand. In the 20th and 21st centuries, the Maori population began to recover, and efforts were made to redress social, economic, political and economic issues facing

1971-564: The islands of the South Pacific Ocean , where low islands are found on the fringing reefs that surround most volcanic islands. Volcanic islands normally rise above a hotspot or subduction zone . Volcanic islands usually range in size between 1 and 104 square kilometres (0.4 and 40 sq mi). Islands above a certain size usually have fresh groundwater , while low islands often do not, so volcanic islands are more likely to be habitable. Many volcanic islands emerge from

2044-453: The ' Australo-Papuans ' of New Guinea and the Solomon Islands . The preliminary analysis of skulls found at the Teouma and Talasiu Lapita sites is that they lack Australian or Papuan affinities and instead have affinities to mainland Asian populations. A 2017 DNA analysis of modern Polynesians indicates that there has been intermarriage resulting in a mixed Austronesian-Papuan ancestry of

2117-526: The 19th century, leading to tension with the indigenous Māori. On October 28, 1835, a group of Māori tribesmen issued a declaration of independence (drafted by Scottish businessman James Busby ) as the " United Tribes of New Zealand ", in order to resist potential efforts at colonizing New Zealand by the French and prevent merchant ships and their cargo which belonged to Māori merchants from being seized at foreign ports. The new state received recognition from

2190-520: The Bismarck Archipelago. The modern Polynesians still show human genetic results of a Melanesian culture which allowed indigenous men, but not women, to "marry in" – useful evidence for matrilocality. Although matrilocality and matrilineality receded at some early time, Polynesians and most other Austronesian speakers in the Pacific Islands were and are still highly "matricentric" in their traditional jurisprudence. The Lapita pottery for which

2263-637: The Hawaiian Emperor Seamount Chain and are 80 million years old. Polynesia is generally defined as the islands within the Polynesian Triangle , although some islands inhabited by Polynesians are situated outside the Polynesian Triangle. Geographically, the Polynesian Triangle is drawn by connecting the points of Hawaii , New Zealand , and Easter Island . The other main island groups located within

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2336-555: The Holy Bible into the native tongue, adding the letters h, k, and r to accommodate the new sounds from the scriptures. The spoken language has since adopted a heavy "k" sound that is usually reserved for non-biblical traditional oratory and everyday conversation. There are three elementary schools in Manu'a: Faleasao Elementary, Fitiuta Elementary, and 'Olosega Elementary. The high school is on Taʻū Island, called Manuʻa High School, and

2409-740: The Kingdom of Fiji by 1871. In around 1855 a Tongan prince, Enele Ma'afu , proclaimed the Lau islands as his kingdom, and took the title Tui Lau . Fiji had been ruled by numerous divided chieftains until Cakobau unified the landmass. The Lapita culture, the ancestors of the Polynesians, existed in Fiji from about 3500 BC until they were displaced by the Melanesians about a thousand years later. (Both Samoans and subsequent Polynesian cultures adopted Melanesian painting and tattoo methods.) In 1873, Cakobau ceded

2482-462: The Manuʻa District had a per capita income of $ 5,441 — this makes the Manuʻa District the county / county-equivalent with the lowest-per capita income in the entire United States. Traditionally, the people of Manuʻa spoke the Samoan language with a unique "t" sound. The ancient sound was between a light spoken "t" with a puff of air and a gentle "d" sound. By the 1830s, missionaries transcribed

2555-534: The Māori in wider New Zealand society. Beginning in the 1960s, a protest movement emerged seeking redress for historical grievances . In the 2013 New Zealand census , roughly 600,000 people in New Zealand identified as being Māori. In the 9th century, the Tui Manuʻa controlled a vast maritime empire comprising most of the settled islands of Polynesia. The Tui Manuʻa is one of the oldest Samoan titles in Samoa. Traditional oral literature of Samoa and Manu'a talks of

2628-584: The Northern and Southern groups. The islands are spread out across many kilometers of a vast ocean. The largest of these islands is called Rarotonga, which is also the political and economic capital of the nation. The Cook Islands were formerly known as the Hervey Islands, but this name refers only to the Northern Groups. It is unknown when this name was changed to reflect the current name. It

2701-649: The Polynesian Triangle are Samoa , Tonga , the Cook Islands , Tuvalu , Tokelau , Niue , Wallis and Futuna , and French Polynesia . Also, small Polynesian settlements are in Papua New Guinea , the Solomon Islands , the Caroline Islands , and Vanuatu . An island group with strong Polynesian cultural traits outside of this great triangle is Rotuma , situated north of Fiji . The people of Rotuma have many common Polynesian traits, but speak

2774-472: The Polynesians (as with other modern Austronesians, with the exception of Taiwanese aborigines ). Research at the Teouma and Talasiu Lapita sites implies that the migration and intermarriage, which resulted in the mixed Austronesian-Papuan ancestry of the Polynesians, occurred after the first initial migration to Vanuatu and Tonga. A complete mtDNA and genome-wide SNP comparison (Pugach et al. , 2021) of

2847-664: The South Sea Islands because of their relative proximity to the southern Pacific islands, even though they are in fact located in the North Pacific . Another term in use, which avoids this inconsistency, is "the Polynesian Triangle " (from the shape created by the layout of the islands in the Pacific Ocean). This term makes clear that the grouping includes the Hawaiian Islands, which are located at

2920-633: The Teouma Lapita site ( Efate Island , Vanuatu ) and the Talasiu Lapita site (near Nuku'alofa , Tonga ) published in 2016 supports the Express Train model; although with the qualification that the migration bypassed New Guinea and Island Melanesia . The conclusion from research published in 2016 is that the initial population of those two sites appears to come directly from Taiwan or the northern Philippines and did not mix with

2993-680: The Trusteeship Agreement terminated. The new Independent State of Samoa was not a monarchy, though the Malietoa titleholder remained very influential. It effectively ended however with the death of Malietoa Tanumafili II , the country's head of state, on May 11, 2007. In the 10th century, the Tuʻi Tonga Empire was established in Tonga, and most of the Western Pacific came within its sphere of influence, up to parts of

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3066-745: The Tuimanuʻa government (Office of the Governor, 2004). Around this time, as of 1903, Manu'a had a total population of approximately 2,000 residents. Since that time, the Manuʻa Island Group has officially been part of the US Protectorate of American Samoa . In 1915, in response to the destruction caused to Manu'a that year by a hurricane, both the U.S. Congress and the American Red Cross sent financial aid to American Samoa for

3139-753: The US mainland. Volcanic island Geologically, a volcanic island is an island of volcanic origin. The term high island can be used to distinguish such islands from low islands , which are formed from sedimentation or the uplifting of coral reefs (which have often formed on sunken volcanos). There are a number of volcanic islands that rise no more than 1 metre (3 ft 3 in) above sea level , often classified as islets or rocks, while some low islands, such as Banaba , Henderson Island , Makatea , Nauru , and Niue , rise over 50 metres (160 ft) above sea level. The two types of islands are often found in proximity to each other, especially among

3212-900: The archaeological record, there are well-defined traces of this expansion which allow the path it took to be followed and dated with some certainty. It is thought that by roughly 1400 BC, " Lapita peoples", so-named after their pottery tradition, appeared in the Bismarck Archipelago of northwest Melanesia . This culture is seen as having adapted and evolved through time and space since its emergence "Out of Taiwan ". They had given up rice production, for instance, which required paddy field agriculture unsuitable for small islands. However, they still cultivated other ancestral Austronesian staple cultigens like Dioscorea yams and taro (the latter are still grown with smaller-scale paddy field technology), as well as adopting new ones like breadfruit and sweet potato . The results of research at

3285-426: The chiefly title of Tuʻi Kanokupolu, but had been baptised with the name Jiaoji ("George") in 1831. In 1875, with the help of the missionary Shirley Waldemar Baker , he declared Tonga a constitutional monarchy, formally adopted the western royal style, emancipated the "serfs", enshrined a code of law, land tenure, and freedom of the press, and limited the power of the chiefs. Tonga became a British protectorate under

3358-401: The decline of the Tui Manuʻa's power, with the western isles of Savaiʻi and Upolu rising to prominence in the post-Tongan occupation period and the establishment of the tafaʻifa system that dominated Samoan politics well into the 20th century. This was disrupted in the early 1900s due to colonial intervention, with east–west division by Tripartite Convention (1899) and subsequent annexation by

3431-596: The declining population, fewer and fewer locals are fishing and farming, and the dependence on imported food has been exasperated by the lack of local produce, flailing plantations, and diminishing livestock. A few mom-and-pop stores are open, and some private rental homes contribute to the local economy. Yet, the American Samoa Government (ASG) is the largest employer in the islands, with branch offices of each government department: Agriculture, Education, Department of Health, Public Safety & Fire, Port Administration, ASPA, ASTCA, Marine Wildlife Resources, and M&O. In 2010,

3504-443: The deep abyss of the ocean, and feature rough or mountainous landscapes in their interiors and a diverse array of summit elevations. Researchers have observed that the island will often be covered by dense tropical forest. These limit settlement on the interior of many islands, forcing communities to develop along the coast. Larger islands may have rivers, resulting in flood hazards. Rivers deliver sediment downstream, which can dominate

3577-423: The east. This model presents consistencies and inconsistencies with models of Polynesian migration that are based on archaeology and linguistic analysis. The 2021 genomic model presents a migration pathway from Samoa to the Cook Islands (Rarotonga), then to the Society Islands (Tōtaiete mā) in the 11th century AD, the western Austral Islands (Tuha'a Pae) and the Tuāmotu Archipelago in the 12th century AD, with

3650-424: The first European landing in the islands when he set foot on Rakahanga in 1606, calling it Gente Hermosa (Beautiful People). Cook Islanders are ethnically Polynesians or Eastern Polynesia. They are culturally associated with Tahiti, Eastern Islands, NZ Maori and Hawaii. The Lau Islands were subject to periods of Tongan rulership and then Fijian control until their eventual conquest by Seru Epenisa Cakobau of

3723-408: The first time. The hurricane, which hit the islands on January 9, 1915, caused widespread destruction in the Manuʻa Islands. The storm severed all forms of communication with the outside world, isolating the islands. In the aftermath, no vessels on the Manuʻa Islands were capable of making the journey to Tutuila . It took 22 days for the first contact to be reestablished between Tutuila and Manuʻa. This

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3796-433: The general archaeological complex of the earliest "Oceanic" Austronesian speakers in the Pacific Islands are named also lapsed in Western Polynesia. Language, social life and material culture were very distinctly "Polynesian" by 1000 BC. Early European observers detected theocratic elements in traditional Polynesian government. Linguistically, there are five sub-groups of the Polynesian language group . Each represents

3869-608: The importance of implementing effective risk mitigation plans that include nature-based solutions to improve societal safety on these islands. These involve leveraging natural processes and ecosystems to reduce hazard impacts. This can include the restoration of natural barriers like mangroves or coral reefs that protect against tsunamis and storm surges or the maintenance of natural water catchments that can mitigate flood risks. Polynesia Polynesia ( UK : / ˌ p ɒ l ɪ ˈ n iː z i ə / POL -in- EE -zee-ə , US : /- ˈ n iː ʒ ə / -⁠ EE -zhə )

3942-429: The initial settlement of individual islands; although Professor Matisoo-Smith of the Otago study said that the founding Māori population of New Zealand must have been in the hundreds, much larger than previously thought. The Polynesian population experienced a founder effect and genetic drift. The Polynesian may be distinctively different both genotypically and phenotypically from the parent population from which it

4015-436: The islands became a U.S. territory, and the title and estates of Tuimanuʻa remain in the custody of the Anoalo clan (the male Tuimanuʻa line). So the title Tui Manuʻa technically still exists, although no one is the holder of the title. The Tripartite Convention of 1899 partitioned the Samoan Islands, giving the U.S. control of the eastern islands (including Tutuila and the Manuʻa Group), and giving European powers control of

4088-421: The migrant pathway branching to the north to the Marquesas (Te Henua 'Enana), to Raivavae in the south, and to the easternmost destination on Easter Island (Rapa Nui), which was settled in approximately 1200 AD via Mangareva . The Polynesians were matrilineal and matrilocal Stone Age societies upon their arrival in Tonga , Samoa and the surrounding islands, after having spent at least some time in

4161-425: The northern vertex of the referenced "triangle". Polynesia is characterized by a small amount of land spread over a very large portion of the mid- and southern Pacific Ocean . It comprises approximately 300,000 to 310,000 square kilometres (117,000 to 118,000 sq mi) of land, of which more than 270,000 km (103,000 sq mi) are within New Zealand . The Hawaiian archipelago comprises about half

4234-488: The past. Some islands of Polynesian origin are outside the general triangle that geographically defines the region. The Line Islands and the Phoenix Islands , most of which are parts of Kiribati , had no permanent settlements until European colonization, but are often considered to be parts of the Polynesian Triangle . Polynesians once inhabited the Auckland Islands , the Kermadec Islands , and Norfolk Island in pre-colonial times, but these islands were uninhabited by

4307-412: The population of these islands has been decreasing steadily for decades. In the 1930s some 20% of the population of American Samoa lived in the Manuʻa Islands. By the 1980s, only 6% were located there. Emigration is the consequence of a lack of economic opportunities and a desire of young people to participate in the more modern lifestyle offered on Tutuila (Office of Tourism, 2005). All the land of Manuʻa

4380-502: The remainder. Most Polynesian islands and archipelagos , including the Hawaiian Islands and Samoa , are composed of volcanic islands built by hotspots (volcanoes). The other land masses in Polynesia — New Zealand , Norfolk Island , and Ouvéa , the Polynesian outlier near New Caledonia — are the unsubmerged portions of the largely sunken continent of Zealandia . Zealandia is believed to have mostly sunk below sea level 23 million years ago, and recently partially resurfaced due to

4453-431: The remains of early settlers of the Mariana Islands and early Lapita individuals from Vanuatu and Tonga also suggest that both migrations originated directly from the same ancient Austronesian source population from the Philippines . The complete absence of "Papuan" admixture in the early samples indicates that these early voyages bypassed eastern Indonesia and the rest of New Guinea . The authors have also suggested

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4526-473: The shape of the coast and contribute to erosion. Tall volcanic islands are often surrounded by protective fringing or barrier reefs, creating lagoons. The unique geological and geographical characteristics of volcanic islands make them prone to many natural hazards, which are expected to worsen due to climate change . These include volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, tsunamis, landslides, and severe weather events like hurricanes or typhoons. Studies have highlighted

4599-432: The sun is strongly related to traditional beliefs and defines the uniformity of cultural identity across both Samoas. The term Fa'asamoa describes "The Samoan Way", or traditional Samoan way of life Today, many families of Manuʻa rely on income from family members working in Tutuila and in the United States. The local diet was generally healthier than in Tutuila, with less reliance on imported tinned foods. However, with

4672-474: The time European explorers arrived. The oceanic islands to the east of Easter Island, such as Clipperton Island , the Galápagos Islands , and the Juan Fernández Islands , were in the past formerly categorized on rare occasion as part of Polynesia. No evidence of prehistoric contact with either Polynesians or the indigenous peoples of the Americas has been found. The Polynesian people are considered, by linguistic, archaeological, and human genetic evidence,

4745-431: The title at the beginning of the 20th century. Before he died on July 2, 1909, he expressed the wish that the title die with him. At the time, the U.S. government took the position that Elisara's title had actually changed to “District Governor” nine years before his death, on June 5, 1900, the day that the U.S. flag had been hoisted at Taʻū (Office of the Governor, 2004). However, titles and holdings were not obliterated when

4818-436: The west, and the distinctive Polynesian language and culture emerging on Tonga and Samoa to the east. Where there was once faint evidence of uniquely shared developments in Fijian and Polynesian speech, most of this is now called "borrowing" and is thought to have occurred in those and later years more than as a result of continuing unity of their earliest dialects on those far-flung lands. Contacts were mediated especially through

4891-467: The western Polynesian societies are well documented and it is speculated that the Tui Manuʻa dynasty grew through its success in obtaining control over the oceanic trade of currency goods such as finely woven ceremonial mats, whale ivory " tabua ", obsidian and basalt tools, chiefly red feathers, and seashells reserved for royalty (such as polished nautilus and the egg cowry ). Samoa's long history of various ruling families continued until well after

4964-437: The western islands (including ʻUpolu and Savaiʻi). In 1901, Tutuila's leaders agreed to this arrangement. As a result, Manu'a was eventually forced to accept U.S. rule, and they formalized their acceptance in a Deed of Succession, signed by the Tui Manuʻa (supreme chief of Manuʻa) on July 16, 1904. The signing took place at the Crown residence of the Tuimanuʻa (called the Faleula ) in Lalopua (according to official documents of

5037-418: Was achieved when Pele Scoles repaired a longboat and rowed from Ofu to Tutuila. Manu'a District was first recorded beginning with the 1900 U.S. Census. No census was taken in 1910, but a special census was taken in 1912. Regular decennial censuses were taken beginning in 1920. Its population zenith was in 1950. As of 2000–10, it had a population lower than when first recorded in 1900. The history of Manuʻa

5110-414: Was designed to serve all of Manuʻa in 1966. Students seeking higher education go to American Samoa Community College on Tutuila Island where the University of Hawaiʻi offers a teachers' college, and several mainline churches offer seminaries. Such as the Kanana Fou Seminary and the Wayland Baptist University. Some students opt to attend the National University of Samoa on ʻUpolu Island, or elsewhere on

5183-491: Was first used in 1756 by the French writer Charles de Brosses , who originally applied it to all the islands of the Pacific . In 1831, Jules Dumont d'Urville proposed a narrower definition during a lecture at the Société de Géographie of Paris. By tradition, the islands located in the southern Pacific have also often been called the South Sea Islands , and their inhabitants have been called South Sea Islanders . The Hawaiian Islands have often been considered to be part of

5256-459: Was found that 96% (or 93.8%) of Polynesian mtDNA has an Asian origin, as does one-third of Polynesian Y chromosomes; the remaining two-thirds from New Guinea and nearby islands; this is consistent with matrilocal residence patterns. Polynesians existed from the intermixing of few ancient Austronesian-Melanesian founders, genetically they belong almost entirely to the Haplogroup B (mtDNA), which

5329-409: Was settled is debated, it is widely accepted that the island groups in the geographic center of the region (i.e. the Cook Islands , Society Islands , Marquesas Islands , etc.) were settled initially between 1000 and 1150 AD, and ending with more far flung island groups such as Hawaii , New Zealand , and Easter Island settled between 1200 and 1300 AD. Tiny populations may have been involved in

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