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86-789: Samoans or Samoan people ( Samoan : tagata Sāmoa ) are the Indigenous Polynesian people of the Samoan Islands , an archipelago in Polynesia , who speak the Samoan language . The group's home islands are politically and geographically divided between the Independent State of Samoa and American Samoa , an unincorporated territory of the United States of America . Though divided by national border,

172-539: A literal reading of the Genesis creation narrative. There is a "special creation" of each separate kind in six 24-hour days, starting a few thousand years ago. In The Mystery of Life's Origin , Charles B. Thaxton argues for "Special Creation by a Creator beyond the Cosmos", and asserts that special creation holds "that the source that produced life was intelligent". The Pontifical Biblical Commission issued

258-461: A matai is deemed cruel or ineffective, the title is stripped and a new matai is elected. However, a more often occurrence is the current matai becoming elderly or ill and requesting that a new matai be elected in order for there to be a more stable and effective leadership in place. The main leader of each individual household is named the Chief of the family. One person, usually a male figure,

344-406: A matai is to choose to live in a household that has no other males, or to move to his wife's household if there are no males in her family's household either. The election of a matai is under the guidance of another matai who is related to the family, allowing for a fair election. Once a new matai is chosen, a feast is thrown for the family, followed by a bigger feast for the whole village at

430-631: A boy born to Samoan parents is 56 times more likely to get into the NFL than any other boy in America. Wrestlers of Samoan heritage have had high representation within professional wrestling with Samoans winning championships across many major promotions including multiple world championships. Three Samoans have held the WWE Championship, one has held the WWE Womens championship, and one has held

516-587: A decree ratified by Pope Pius X on June 30, 1909, mentioning special creation only in relation to humans, not to the other species. In 2004, the International Theological Commission, then under the presidency of Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger (soon to be Pope Benedict XVI ), published a paper in which it accepts the current scientific accounts of the history of the universe commencing in the Big Bang about 15 billion years ago and of

602-409: A handful; feanu , to spit; anusaga , spittle; tanu , to bury; tanulia , the part buried. These verbal nouns have an active participial meaning; e.g. ʻO le faiga o le fale , the building of the house. Often they refer to the persons acting, in which case they govern the next noun in the genitive with a ; ʻO le faiga a fale , contracted into ʻo le faiga fale , those who build

688-410: A later date. At the larger feast, the matai is expected to give a traditional inaugural speech, displaying his abilities to speak publicly, his wisdom and retelling of Samoan myths. Throughout this speech he is watched by village council, as well as all the other matais in the village. Once the matai has proved himself to the other matai’s by giving the traditional address, he is called on to serve

774-424: A man's tattoo extensively covers from mid-back, down the sides and flanks, to the knees. A woman's tattoo is not as extensive or heavy. The geometric patterns are based on ancient designs that often denote rank and status. The va'a (canoe), for example, stretches across a man's mid-back. In Samoa's cultural past most males were tattooed between the ages of 14 and 18, when it was determined they had stopped growing, so

860-431: A maʻa , the heap of stones, that is, the stones which have been heaped up. Those nouns which take ʻaga are rare, except on Tutuila ; gataʻaga , the end; ʻamataʻaga , the beginning; olaʻaga , lifetime; misaʻaga , quarrelling. Sometimes the addition of ga makes the signification intensive; such as ua and timu , rain; uaga and timuga , continued pouring (of rain). The simple form of

946-708: A member of the Austronesian family, and more specifically the Samoic branch of the Polynesian subphylum. It is closely related to other Polynesian languages with many shared cognate words such as aliʻi , ʻava , atua , tapu and numerals as well as in the name of gods in mythology . Linguists differ somewhat on the way they classify Samoan in relation to the other Polynesian languages . The "traditional" classification, based on shared innovations in grammar and vocabulary, places Samoan with Tokelauan ,

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1032-423: A member of the church. At a feast, families provide food from all over the village. After the conclusion of the wedding, the newlyweds choose which side of the family they would like to live with. After moving in with a particular family, they are expected to do work around the land and the house to help provide for their family. When families have children, they too are expected to help with duties and chores around

1118-550: A number of countries, the total number of speakers worldwide was estimated at 510,000 in 2015. It is the third-most widely spoken language in New Zealand, where 2.2% of the population, 101,900 people, were able to speak it as of 2018. The language is notable for the phonological differences between formal and informal speech as well as a ceremonial form used in Samoan oratory. Samoan is an analytic , isolating language and

1204-513: A recalling of past histories and contacts within the Polynesian archipelago by Samoan oral high chiefs. These 'taeaos' include oral and written accounts of familial tribal/clan contacts with the neighboring islands of: Early contact with Europeans was established in the 18th century. Christianity was formally introduced with the arrival of L.M.S. Christian missionaries in August 1830. During

1290-513: A variety of cultural celebrations. Athletes of Samoan descent are widely known for their success in full-contact sports such as American football , rugby union , rugby league , boxing , professional wrestling , and mixed martial arts . Samoa is said to produce among the highest number of top-level rugby union and rugby league players per capita. American Samoa produces the highest number of NFL players and has been dubbed "Football Island" by mainland coaches and media. It's estimated that

1376-465: A vowel in some words creates the sound of the English w , a letter not part of the Samoan alphabet, as in uaua (artery, tendon). /a/ is reduced to [ ə ] in only a few words, such as mate or maliu 'dead', vave 'be quick'. In formal Samoan, used for example in news broadcasts or sermons, the consonants /t n ŋ/ are used. In colloquial Samoan, however, /n ŋ/ merge as [ŋ] and /t/

1462-450: Is (C)V, where V may be long or a diphthong. A sequence VV may occur only in derived forms and compound words; within roots, only the initial syllable may be of the form V. Metathesis of consonants is frequent, such as manu for namu 'scent', lavaʻau for valaʻau 'to call', but vowels may not be mixed up in this way. Every syllable ends in a vowel. No syllable consists of more than three sounds, one consonant and two vowels,

1548-410: Is a big part of their culture. Traditional Samoan music still has a purpose and a function in today's society, but has partially given way to contemporary or externally-influenced genre of Samoan music. Of them are high mixture of Reggae and Hawaiian music which can also illuminate as an important influence on Samoa. There are many popular musicians who hail from, or who are of Samoan descent. They include

1634-432: Is a war dance performed by Samoan sporting teams before each match. The Taualuga , a celebratory siva, and center of Samoan culture, has been adopted and altered throughout Western Polynesia. Traditionally performed by the virgin highborn son or daughter of a Samoan chief, a taupou(female) or manaia(male) will dress in full festive attire for the siva. Usually consisting of a finely woven ie'toga mat decorated with feathers of

1720-573: Is an official language , alongside English , in both jurisdictions. It is widely spoken across the Pacific region, heavily so in New Zealand and also in Australia and the United States . Among the Polynesian languages, Samoan is the most widely spoken by number of native speakers. Samoan is spoken by approximately 260,000 people in the archipelago and with many Samoans living in diaspora in

1806-406: Is at Safotu. The same thing is done in referring to a family; as Sa Muliaga, the family of Muliaga, the term Sa referring to a wide extended family of clan with a common ancestor. So most words ending in ga , not a sign of a noun, as tigā , puapuaga , pologa , faʻataga and aga . So also all words ending in a diphthong , as mamau , mafai , avai . In speaking

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1892-435: Is bound to the lower broad end of the tortoiseshell. The larger the comb, the greater the area on the skin is covered with fewer strokes. The master uses a small mallet to repeatedly tap a short-handled instrument. The process takes days and is sometimes partially accomplished over longer periods, with recuperation in between. Tattoo designs have changed to include freehand symbols such as the kava bowl representing hospitality;

1978-432: Is either the bathing-place or the party of bathers. The first would take o after it to govern the next noun, ʻO le taʻelega o le nuʻu , the bathing-place of the village; the latter would be followed by a , ʻO le taʻelega a teine , the bathing-place of the girls. Sometimes such nouns have a passive meaning, such as being acted upon; ʻO le taomaga a lau , the thatch that has been pressed; ʻo le faupuʻega

2064-453: Is elected to become the Chief of his extended family. Elections take place after the former Chief has died or is no longer able to fulfill his duties, either for ethical reasonings or old age. Elections are a long and strenuous process for members of the extended family. For one portion of the family is going up against the other portion, leading to tensions within the whole family. Each Chief

2150-464: Is his excellence or that is his best. Many verbs may become participle-nouns by adding ga ; as sau , come, sauga ; e.g. ʻO lona sauga muamua , his first coming; mau" to mauga , ʻO le mauga muamua , the first dwelling. As there is no proper gender in Oceanic languages, different genders are sometimes expressed by distinct names: When no distinct name exists, the gender of animals

2236-485: Is in New Zealand , where there were 101,937 Samoan speakers at the 2018 census, or 2.2% of the country's population. Samoan is the third-most spoken language in New Zealand after English and Māori. According to the 2021 census in Australia conducted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the Samoan language is spoken in the homes of 49,021 people. US Census 2010 shows more than 180,000 Samoans reside in

2322-652: Is known by adding poʻa and fafine respectively. The gender of some few plants is distinguished by tane and fafine , as in ʻo le esi tane ; ʻo le esi fafine . No other names of objects have any mark of gender. The singular number is known by the article with the noun; e.g. ʻo le tama , a boy. Properly there is no dual. It is expressed by omitting the article and adding numbers e lua for things e.g. e toʻalua teine , two girls, for persons; or ʻo fale e lua , two houses; ʻo tagata e toʻalua , two persons; or ʻo lāʻua , them/those two (people). Special creation Catholicism uses

2408-616: Is known to their people as “Slack Key Guitar”. One traditional instrument of Samoa is known as the Fala. It is made up of rolled “wicker style mats” and is beaten with drum sticks to make the sound of a drum. Another instrument popular in Samoa is a form of drum called the Pate. It is originally from Tahiti and introduced to Samoa about 500 years ago. It is made of wood from and carved with tribal references or designs. The Fire knife dance or Siva Afi

2494-530: Is like a miniaturised guitar, the other where the body is made from half a coconut shell." Western string instruments such as guitars are widely available across the Pacific Islands, with many bands performing and recording acoustic and amplified music in Samoa since the 1970s. Younger generations continue to perform in string bands as well as gravitate toward genres such as reggae , hip hop , rhythm and blues , gospel and soul . In Samoa, music

2580-450: Is pronounced [k] . The glottal stop /ʔ/ is phonemic in Samoan. Its presence or absence affects the meaning of words otherwise spelled the same, e.g. mai = from, originate from; maʻi = sickness, illness. The glottal stop is represented by the koma liliu ("inverted comma"), which is recognized by Samoan scholars and the wider community. The koma liliu is often replaced by an apostrophe in modern publications. Use of

2666-441: Is sometimes used where English would require the indefinite article. As a specific, rather than a definite article, it is used for specific referents that the speaker has in mind (specificity), regardless of whether the listener is expected to know which specific referent(s) is/are intended (definiteness). A sentence such as ʻUa tu mai le vaʻa , could thus, depending on context, be translated into English as "A canoe appears", when

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2752-416: Is the biggest aspect of any figure of land and is where hunting for food, such as wild pig and birds are allowed. Fishing is also an aspect that is allowed within village land. Traditional Samoan tattoo (tatau), pe'a (male tatau), malu (female tatau), demonstrate the strong ties many Samoans feel for their culture. Samoans have practiced the art of tattooing men and women for over 2,000 years. To this day,

2838-449: Is the most popular Samoan dance among tourists in Samoa. The Fa'ataupati or slap dance, performed by males, consists of fierce slapping of the body in rhythmic motion to drum beats. Other Samoan dances include the Maulu'ulu , which is an all-female dance that is more elegant. The Sasa is a dance that can be performed by both males and females in a seated position or standing. The Siva Tau

2924-407: Is the owner of their extended family's land. On that piece of land, families live, grow crops, cook and do other household chores. Also on that piece of land is where the matai resides. Due to the large amount of households within a single village, there are a large amount of Chiefs. So much so that some are able to trace back their aiga timeline over a dozen different generations. The reasoning for

3010-576: Is used when the speaker doesn't have a particular individual of a class in mind, such as in the sentence Ta mai se laʻau , "Cut me a stick", whereby there is no specific stick intended. The plural non-specific article ni is the plural form and may be translated into English as "some" or "any", as in Ta mai ni laʻau , "Cut me some sticks". In addition, Samoan possesses a series of diminutive articles. Names of natural objects, such as men, trees and animals, are mostly primitive nouns, e.g. ʻO le la ,

3096-407: Is very easy to distinguish the different properties owned by separate families. Family reserve sections are where crops are cultivated. The biggest amount of crops grown within the Samoan culture is taro leaves and yams. These plots are available to be shared with other villages and other families. However, they would be no longer classified as a family reserve but regarded as owning the crops but not

3182-550: The "sega"(collared lory or blue crowned lorikeet). However, modern performances primarily consist of dyed chicken feathers. Performers also dress in a surplus of anklets and armbands made of ti leaves, sea turtle shells (uga laumei), coconut shells, or boar's tusk. Followed by the crowning attire of the taupou or manaia, the headdress or "tuiga". Taupous or Manaias, are finished off with a drenching of coconut oil for cosmetic purposes. Throughout this performance, performers are accompanied by upbeat yet simple drum beats usually performed at

3268-718: The AEW World Championship. A majority of these champions are members of the Samoan-American Anoaʻi family . Eight Samoans have been inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame . Samoans are also well represented in limited-contact and non-contact sports such as basketball , baseball , netball , soccer , and volleyball . Margaret Mead , an American anthropologist, is famous for her ethnography turned novel titled Coming of Age in Samoa . This ethnography has information on problems adolescents in Samoa face, and

3354-565: The Austronesian Basic Vocabulary Database is contradictory in that while in part it suggests that Tongan and Samoan form a subgroup, the old subgroups Tongic and Nuclear Polynesian are still included in the classification search of the database itself. There are approximately 470,000 Samoan speakers worldwide, 50 percent of whom live in the Samoan Islands. Thereafter, the greatest concentration

3440-708: The Creator created, [or] what processes He used, for He used processes which are not now operating anywhere in the natural universe. This is why we refer to creation as special creation. We cannot discover by scientific investigation anything about the creative processes used by the Creator. Dennis Jensen of the American Scientific Affiliation states that special creation means that complex living things did not descend from simpler ones but were created independently. James B. Stenson writes that for fundamentalists , special creation follows from

3526-405: The Polynesian outlier languages and the languages of Eastern Polynesia , which include Rapanui , Māori , Tahitian and Hawaiian . Nuclear Polynesian and Tongic (the languages of Tonga and Niue) are the major subdivisions of Polynesian under this analysis. A revision by Marck reinterpreted the relationships among Samoan and the outlier languages. In 2008 an analysis, of basic vocabulary only, from

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3612-407: The Samoan Islands approximately 3500 years ago, settling in what has come to be known as Polynesia further to the east. It is possible, as the natives suggest, that the Samoan Islands were settled some time before 1000 BC and that the original settlement predates the arrival of those to whom the pottery was culturally relevant. It is also generally a wide spread cultural belief throughout Samoa that

3698-547: The Samoans grow up, they are given the most tasks and responsibilities they can hold, until they can take over fully for the aging members of their extended family. When a member of extended family dies, the funeral preparations start almost immediately. Choirs are directed to the mourner's land. The deceased body is bathed and dressed in white. They are placed on woven mats before the funeral less than 24-hours later. During those 24-hours, at least one family member has to stay with

3784-606: The United States, which is triple the number of people living in American Samoa, while slightly less than the estimated population of the island nation of Samoa – 193,000, as of July 2011. Samoan Language Week ( Vaiaso o le Gagana Sāmoa ) is an annual celebration of the language in New Zealand supported by the government and various organisations including UNESCO . Samoan Language Week was started in Australia for

3870-630: The apostrophe and macron diacritics in Samoan words was readopted by the Ministry of Education in 2012 after having been abandoned in the 1960s. /l/ is pronounced as a flap [ ɾ ] following a back vowel ( /a, o, u/ ) and preceding an /i/ ; otherwise it is [ l ] . /s/ is less sibilant (hissing) than in English. /r h/ are found in loan words. The consonants in parentheses are only present in loanwords and informal Samoan. Loanwords from English and other languages have been adapted to Samoan phonology: Stress generally falls on

3956-589: The approaches to understanding these problems. Mead wrote, "A Samoan village is made up of some thirty to forty households, each of which is presided over by a head man called a matai". Regarding Samoan social structures and rules, Mead wrote, "Until a child is six or seven at least she associates very little with her contemporaries." "The women," she observed, "are completely dependent upon their husbands for their status in this village group". Regarding attitudes toward female sexuality, Mead wrote, "Where parents of lower rank complacently ignore their daughters' experiments,

4042-406: The basis of modern Polynesian culture. Among the many parts of Samoan society, three are described below: The matai (chief), the aiga (family head), and the untitled aumaga (laborers) and their manaia (supervisor). Matai , otherwise known as the head of the family and extended family, is a very important figure in the Samoan culture. There are many aspects that go into fully understanding

4128-408: The characterization of the Samoan house or fale signifying kinship; emblems of nature — shells, fish, birds, waves, centipedes; and the traditional geometric lines and angles of different lengths and sizes. Modern pop and rock have a large audience in Samoa, as do several native bands; these bands have abandoned most elements of Samoan traditional music, though there are folky performers. Recently,

4214-435: The chief in ritual cooking and serving the food at ceremonies. They also serve as informal keepers of the peace, interacting with each other as a large group of friends. They often play cards, cricket or gather for dances and parties with each other. The aumaga are supervised by a relative of the chief, called the manaia (supervisor), who helps organize the aumaga and plan their activities. Despite not always truly being

4300-401: The community as a whole. The newly elected matai is expected to host a village-wide feast where he is tasked with providing food for the meal, as well as getting the other matais gifts. Once this task is completed the newly elected matai is officially considered the matai of his household and will hold the position for the rest of his life, should he led correctly. In certain cases where

4386-466: The culture and language are the same. The Samoan people and culture form a vital link and stepping stone in the formation and spread of Polynesian culture, language and religion throughout Eastern Polynesia. Polynesian trade, religion, war, and colonialism are important markers within Polynesian culture that are almost certainly rooted in the Samoan culture. Samoa's ancient history with the kingdom of Tonga , chiefdoms of Fiji and French Polynesia form

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4472-440: The deceased. A feast concludes the event, with food being served to mourners and people who helped with the burial. Other family members take over the responsibilities of the deceased while still serving their own personal chores around the land. The elected Matai of the community is the controller of every portion of a village land. The village Matai says what cultivators will do with land and "hold sway over allocation of plots and

4558-529: The designs would not stretch and suffer in beauty. Today, there has been a strong revival of traditional tattooing in the past generation, not only in Samoa but throughout Polynesia, often as a symbol of cultural identity. Tatau, the Samoan word for tattoo has a number of meanings including correct or rightness . It also signifies the correct quadrangular figures in reference to the fact that Samoan tattoo designs do not include circular lines, although other Polynesian tattoo motifs do. Early Englishmen mispronounced

4644-727: The early 20th century the Samoan Islands were colonized by Germany, Great Britain and the USA. Tutuila and Aunu'u islands were settled by the US and later joined by the Kingdom of Manu'a (1904) to become the current Territory of American Samoa . The western islands became German Samoa . In 1914, New Zealand forces captured the islands from Germany, renaming them Western Samoa. Western Samoa regained its independence on January 1, 1962. In 1997 it formally changed its name to Samoa. Marriage ceremonies are important Samoan cultural events. Marriage involves

4730-457: The evolution of all life on earth including humans from the microorganisms commencing about 4 billion years ago. The Vatican teaches that God acted indirectly through causal chains operating from the beginning of cosmic history, which prepared the way for the moment of transition to the spiritual with the special creation of the human soul. This special creation, the Vatican says, established

4816-434: The family land and representing the family in village affairs. Overall, a matai must have different demeanor than everyone else, especially other males in the family. Matais are also in charge of economic situations. For example, a matai must manage the amount of food his family brings in and must store some away for when times are hard. The matai’s job as a leader is one that is very important in Samoan culture and helps

4902-410: The fire; talafaʻasolopito , ("history") stories placed in order, faletalimalo , ("communal house") house for receiving guests. Like many Austronesian languages, Samoan has separate words for inclusive and exclusive we , and distinguishes singular , dual , and plural . The root for the inclusive pronoun may occur in the singular, in which case it indicates emotional involvement on the part of

4988-457: The first time in 2010. The Samoan alphabet consists of 14 letters, with three more letters ( H , K , R ) used in loan words. The ʻ ( koma liliu or ʻokina ) is used for the glottal stop . Vowel length is phonemic in Samoan; all five vowels also have a long form denoted by the macron . For example, tama means child or boy, while tamā means father. Diphthongs are /au ao ai ae ei ou ue/ . The combination of u followed by

5074-422: The high chief guards his daughter's virginity as he guards the honor of his name". Samoan language Samoan ( Gagana faʻa Sāmoa or Gagana Sāmoa , pronounced [ŋaˈŋana ˈsaːmʊa] ) is a Polynesian language spoken by Samoans of the Samoan Islands . Administratively, the islands are split between the sovereign country of Samoa and the United States territory of American Samoa . It

5160-406: The house, the builders. In some cases verbal nouns refer to either persons or things done by them: ʻO le faiga a talo , the getting of taro, or the party getting the taro , or the taro itself which has been got. The context in such cases decides the meaning. Sometimes place is indicated by the termination; such as tofā , to sleep; tofāga , a sleeping-place, a bed. ʻO le taʻelega

5246-479: The importance of music in Samoan life. Because there was no written language many stories and legends were propagated through song and the complex rhythms from the pate are essential in the performance of many Samoan dances. In fact in many dances, the dancers themselves add to the rhythm by clapping their hands, and dependent upon the way in which the hand is held produce a range of different sounds. Two instruments were developed that are now synonymous with Samoan music,

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5332-544: The islands were the central base point for the beginning of the great voyages, the Polynesian expansion to the East and South. These stories and legends are recorded in print by European historians, anthropologists, archaeologists and still spoken of in contemporary times by Samoan high chiefs in their great speeches and decrees during kava ceremonies and chiefly/ royal ceremonies. The voyages still spoken of in ancient Polynesian chieftain oratory poetics (lauga) are called 'taeao';

5418-468: The land, by age three or four. The young girls take care of other children and housework, while the boys help with cultivation, animals and water gathering. By the time the children reach the age of seven or eight, they are expected to know and be acclimated to the life and chores of the Samoan culture. This includes being adept at "agriculture, fishing, cooking, and child care" along with a multitude of other chores that their elders have directed them to do. As

5504-440: The land. The family reserve is not cultivated as much as other sources of property. This is due to the fact that crops grown here are able to grow quickly and easily without many interruptions. Village land is the least cultivated and most shared portion of land in Samoan villages. To be able to plant here requires permission from the village council. This is because "the land is community property and not family owned". Village land

5590-568: The large amount of Chiefs is that the title could be claimed through blood ties, marriage, and adoption. While chiefs, talking chiefs and matais all have a title, there are men in the village that are untitled. These men are placed in a group called the aumaga . These men are the labor core of the community as they perform most of the heavy labor. The aumaga are tasked with building houses, repairing roads, planting and harvesting gardens, fishing, and cutting and selling coconut meat. The aumaga also have ceremonial responsibilities, such as helping

5676-491: The likes of Reggae artist: J Boog, the hip hop group: Boo-Yaa T.R.I.B.E. , and one of the most recognizable bands of Samoa: The Five Stars . Opera singer Jonathan Lemalu was a co-recipient of the Grammy Award for Best Opera Recording for his work on "Britten: Billy Budd" at the 52nd Grammy Awards . Samoa is home to the guitar style of fingerpicking which is in known in the islands as “Le Igi”. It hails from Hawaii and

5762-523: The listener or reader is not expected to know which canoe, or "The canoe appears", if the listener or reader is expected to know which canoe, such as when the canoe has previously been mentioned. The plural specific is marked by a null article: ʻO le tagata "the person", ʻO tagata "people". (The word ʻoe in these examples is not an article but a "presentative" preposition. It marks noun phrases used as clauses, introducing clauses or used as appositions etc.) The non-specific singular article se

5848-431: The nominative ʻoe , the prepositions o, a, i, e , and the euphonic particles i and te , are unaccented; as ʻO maua, ma te o atu ia te oee , we two will go to you. Ina , the sign of the imperative, is accented on the ultima; ína , the sign of the subjunctive , on the penultima. The preposition iá is accented on the ultima, the pronoun ia on the penultima. Samoan syllable structure

5934-420: The number of words and affixes of which the compound word is composed; as tofátumoánaíná , to be engulfed. The articles le and se are unaccented. When used to form a pronoun or participle, le and se are contractions for le e , se e , and so are accented; as ʻO le ona le meae , the owner, literally the (person) whose (is) the thing, instead of O le e ona le meae . The sign of

6020-459: The overall structure stay in place. The election of a Matai is a lengthy process that can last up to several weeks and is often a highly competitive race. In this race different branches from each family put forth a male candidate, accompanied by reasons why he would be a good candidate. These reasons range from the candidate's wisdom to wealth, including highly praised values such as negotiating, ritual knowledge, politics and economics. However, if

6106-421: The penultimate mora ; that is, on the last syllable if that contains a long vowel or diphthong or on the second-last syllable otherwise. Verbs formed from nouns ending in a, and meaning to abound in, have properly two aʻs, as puaa ( puaʻaa ), pona , tagata , but are written with one. In speaking of a place at some distance, the accent is placed on the last syllable; as ʻO loʻo i Safotu , he

6192-566: The phrase "special creation" in two different senses: In creationism, "special creation" is a literal interpretation of the Genesis creation narrative , viewing it as an accurate description of the creation of the universe in essentially its present form over the course of six 24-hour days. Duane Gish of the Institute for Creation Research defined "special creation" as being creation using supernatural processes: We do not know how

6278-462: The population has seen a resurgence of old Samoan songs, remixed in the style of reggae but with some traditional elements, such as the use of the pate and old chord structure. Initially in Samoan music, "there were just two instruments in use; the pate, a hollowed out log drum that comes in various sizes, and the fala , a rolled up mat beaten with sticks. In addition to this was the human voice. This limited range of instrumentation had no effect on

6364-427: The same. Each house includes a main sleeping house, a guest house and a latrine. Yards with trees and gardens make up the house village lot, with some lots containing the entirety of the extended family. The underbrush covers the entirety of the land. These plots of land are recognizable to all villagers and are separated by boundaries. Boundaries are usually made up from a variety of rocks, streams, trees and plants. It

6450-423: The selo and the ukulele . The selo is a stringed instrument made from a broomstick, or similar object, attached to a large box, bucket or other object that acts as a sounding board. A single length of string joins the top of the stick to the box, which is plucked to produce a sound similar to that of a bass. The ukele is a small guitar-like instrument but with only four strings. It can be found in two forms, one which

6536-495: The son of a matai meets these requirements, he is typically given a major edge in the race. Another advantage the son of a matai or any man in the matai’s household is given is being able to observe and help the matai starting from a young age. Most men considered for the Matai position are at least 40 years old, meaning many young candidates don't even stand a chance. One strategy that can be used by any males aspiring to become

6622-525: The son of the matai (chief), the manaia is still called “son” by the matai . Although the Samoan natives (Tagata Māo‘i) have long claimed to be the indigenous people of their islands — holding firm to the belief that Samoans were birthed from a tear in the heavens (Lagi, Lani) special creation in Samoa — it has been theorized by many linguists and anthropologists, based on linguistic commonalities as well as archaeological findings, that migrants from Maritime Southeast Asia via Island Melanesia arrived in

6708-436: The speaker. In formal speech, fuller forms of the roots mā- , tā- , and lā- are ‘imā- , ‘itā- , and ‘ilā- . Articles in Samoan do not show the definiteness of the noun phrase as do those of English but rather specificity . The singular specific article le has frequently, erroneously, been referred to as a "definite" article, such as by Pratt, often with an additional vague explanation that it

6794-422: The sun; ʻo le tagata , the person; ʻo le talo , the taro; ʻo le iʻa , the fish; also manufactured articles, such as matau , an axe, vaʻa , canoe, tao , spear, fale , house, etc. Some nouns are derived from verbs by the addition of either ga , saga , taga , maga , or ʻaga : such as tuli , to chase; tuliga , chasing; luluʻu , to fill the hand; luʻutaga ,

6880-520: The term Matai , such as how one is elected and what their role is. A matai is expected to take his or her place amongst a network of other matai that govern a village or a family. Depending on the type of matai title he or she holds, and how that title ranks amongst other titles, each matai should lend their voice to deliberations and decisions made by the village or family council. They encourage warm family relations, offer advice, direct religious participation, and oversee disputes. As well as watching over

6966-404: The transfer of property of the woman, the toga, and the man's property, the oloa. It is a village event, with two ceremonies and a feast at the conclusion. In the first ceremony, the bride and groom march through the village to a district judge. The judge then conducts a civil ceremony. Concluding that official ceremony, the newlyweds next gather in a church where a religious ceremony is performed by

7052-404: The two vowels making a diphthong; as fai , mai , tau . Roots are sometimes monosyllabic , but mostly disyllabic or a word consisting of two syllables. Polysyllabic words are nearly all derived or compound words; as nofogatā from nofo (sit, seat) and gatā , difficult of access; taʻigaafi , from taʻi , to attend, and afi , fire, the hearth, making to attend to

7138-690: The verb is sometimes used as a noun: tatalo , to pray; ʻo le tatalo , a prayer; poto , to be wise; ʻo le poto , wisdom. The reciprocal form of the verb is often used as a noun; e.g. ʻO le fealofani , ʻo femisaiga , quarrellings (from misa ), feʻumaiga ; E lelei le fealofani , mutual love is good. A few diminutives are made by reduplication , e.g. paʻapaʻa , small crabs; pulepule , small shells; liilii , ripples; ' ili'ili , small stones. Adjectives are made into abstract nouns by adding an article or pronoun; e.g. lelei , good; ʻo le lelei , goodness; silisili , excellent or best; ʻo lona lea silisili , that

7224-405: The voice is raised, and the emphasis falls on the last word in each sentence. When a word receives an addition by means of an affixed particle, the accent is shifted forward; as alofa , love; alofága , loving, or showing love; alofagía , beloved. Reduplicated words have two accents; as palapala , mud; segisegi , twilight. Compound words may have even three or four, according to

7310-558: The ways in which those plots are used." The only aspect the Matai does not control is who the land will go to after his death. This is to avoid it being controlled by one family for a long period of time. There are four categories that land is divided: Village House Lots, Underbrush, Family Reserve and Village Land. Village house lots is where individual houses or huts of single person or family lives. These houses are built in clusters. The clusters include multiple different aspects, but all look

7396-410: The word tatau and borrowed it into popular usage as tattoo. Traditional tattooing is a painful process. The Samoan tattoo master dips his cutting tools into black ink made from the soot of burnt candlenut shells and then punctures designs into the skin. The cutting tool consists of a short piece of bamboo or light wood with a piece of tortoiseshell bound at right angles at one end. A little bone comb

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