Transcript THE SAMOANS - Fullerton Union High School

THE SAMOANS
By: Shyra Tilley
Per.2
12/4/08
The beginning
The Samoans based the existence of their island on the fact that
there were heavens above and waters below, and no place to stand.
Tagaloa looked down from above and thought he would make such
a standing place. This he did, and called the rock he had created
manu’atele. So pleased was he with his creation that he thought to
make a second rock. He divided the first into little stepping stonesTonga, Fiji, and other islands- and he tossed these into the sea.
Tangaloa returned to Samoa and fashioned a vine to hug all the
rocks in the sea. The vine spread and spread, and soon the leaves
emerged worms-worms that had no heads nor arms nor true life.
Tangaloa gave them these things- arms and legs, heart and head,and thus made them people. He reached down and took pairs of
these new people-one woman and one man-and set each pair upon
an island. These islands needed a king, and so he created a king for
each of the islands. But then he thought again: there must be a king
of kings, one who would be greater than the others. He chose the
son of Day and Night to be this ruler. But when the boy was about to
be born, Tangaloa saw that the baby was attached to strongly to his
mothers womb. The boy was stuck by his abdomen, inside his
mother’s body. When he was born, his belly ripped away, and the
wound was great. The scattering of the islands that would be his
home was thus named Samoa- “Sacred Abdomen”
Introduction and history
Samoans are western
Polynesian people whose
home is about 2300 miles
south of the Hawaiian
islands. The islands of
Samoa are of volcanic
origin, with sandy beaches
along a coral reef coast.
The Samoan islands cover
about 12 hundred miles
and have a population of
bout 193,000. The island
chain is divided into two
political units.
The Matai
Samoan villages are organized around the household and the
extended family unit. Each household is headed by a man, the
matai, who is responsible for those who live under his roof. Electing
a matai is a process of a deliberation that may span weeks, and is
often hotly contested. Different branches of the family each have a
candidate they wish to put forth, and they offer a variety of
arguments to support him. There are generally based on the man’s
intelligence, wealth, ceremonial knowledge, previous service to
family’s interests, and in recent years, both his years of formal
education and his ability to negotiate with Europeans in issues of
politics and economics. Once elected the responsibilities of the
matai are many. He is expected to provide leadership in all facets of
family life. If there is a dispute, he is the arbiter. He encourages
warm family relations, offers advice, directs religious participation.
He oversees lands, and represents the family in village affairs. His
demeanor must be different from his former posture as a man of
lesser import.
Chiefs and Talking Chiefs
The matai are considered chiefs
Talking chiefs are the village orators, and are
famed for the exquisite ceremonial speech. In
public ceremonies, the talking chief bears the
responsibility for all oratory portions of meetings,
sports competitions, property and marriage
exchanges, and other ceremonies. When
exchange parties set out to another village, the
talking chief is always in attendance, and upon
arriving in the host village, he must recite from
memory a highly stylized recitation of salutations.
The Aumaga and the Aualuma
The Aumaga builds houses, repairs roads,
plants and harvests the gardens, fishes
from the coral reef, and cuts coconut meat
for sale. They also have to cook and serve
food at ceremonies.
Unmarried woman have a parallel group
called the Aualuma. Like the Aumaga
serves the needs of the village by
undertaking all of the social, economic, and
ceremonial tasks that older chiefs wives
can no longer accomplish.
Marriage and family
The household of the bride and groom are equally involved
in the planning and expense of the wedding
They have an enormous feast with guests bringing smaller
dishes to contribute
The couple walk throughout he village to a church where a
religious ceremony is performed then after the gift giving
begins
Once married the newly wed couple cannot start a new
household
Samoans have an ambilineal kinship system, they can
choose to affiliate with any number of groups through their
mothers or their fathers.
Where ever the couple reside they are expected to work
cooperatively with the rest of the household.
In the Samoan culture the elderly are valued by their fellow
villagers
The fono
The fono, or village
council, is the central
decision-making forum
of the village. Informal
gatherings of talking
chiefs, which set the
agenda for the council
meetings, allowing all
the matai to know
what issues are to be
debated and resolved.
property
It is the matai who controls the land, in that he holds sway
over allocation of plots and the ways in which those plots are
used. He does not however have the authority to sell the
land or will it to his own children upon death. Family land
essentially belongs to the corporate group. The vote on its
disposition and work on cooperatively.
Land in a Samoan village is divided into four categories. The
first is village house lots which contains trees where you can
pick fruit, or a taro patch.
The second is plantation plots which are outside the village,
either on the hills over looking the houses or along the coast.
The third is a family reserve section, the plots where taro and
yams are cultivated. These plots ay be lent to other villagers,
who may use them to grow crops for their own consumption.
The village also provides a site for hunting wild pigs and bird.
There is also a site high in the mountains where the people
can fish.
Cultivation
They use the slash and burn method as a source of getting
food.
Then they use digging sticks to dislodge rocks and loosen
the soil for planting.
Coconut is the most important crop and the one with the
most variety of uses.
But despite the value of the coconut the taro is preferred as
a food. It is eaten cold and nearly every meal, also breadfruit
There are many specialists but no agricultural specialists
Village councils set up a work schedule to organize the
agricultural life of the community. So if the copra is supposed
to be cut on Tuesday, it is easy to spot someone trying to
sneak into the bush to steal.
Fishing
Unlike cultivation, fishing does
have its specialties. These are
the Tautai, they captain the 30
foot long outrigger canoes,
and sit in the stern of the boat
fishing for bonito( A breed of
Mackerel)
The sign of a skilled tautai is
the necessity of many of his
crew to swim alongside the
boat, on the return trip, owing
to the quantity of bonito now
occupying their place.
They also capture fish in nets,
and use dynamite or poison.
Domestic Work
In Samoa men are primarily responsible for food preparation, but
they are especially involved in cooking traditional meals.
When women prepare parts of the meal they provide things such as
cake mixes or canned goods which they often cook in modern
vessels, among them pressure cookers and deep fryers.
In the pat most dishes were prepared in earth ovens, which is when
stone are the base, and kindling is lit on top to heat the stones.
Another layer of stones is added once the blaze is at its peak, and
in less than an hour the embers are removed, leaving hot rocks that
can be spread out to accommodate the amount of food to be
cooked. Layer upon layer is built, with the leaves acting to prevent
the food from burning. The top most layer is a canopy of broad
leaves, which serve as a lid, trapping the heat.
This method is most commonly used for cooking fish and
vegetables
When pigs are roasted their preparation is more complex, pork is
the focus of ceremonial meals and preparation and division of the
meat is of the utmost importance.
The Supernatural
Samoan myth tells of the tagaloa gods, the Autua, who live as a
family on the top ten mountain tops that form heaven. These gods
appear not to have been attended to in the ways in which many
people worship their deities. There were no priests who attended
them, although matai and talking chiefs might invoke their names at
feast and ceremonies. At mealtime, spoken prayers of thanks might
be offered. The Autua were the higher level of deities. Beneath
them are the Aitu, the spirits of ancestors which are often though
capable of wreaking havoc if displeased.
They sometimes take human for again, dressing in white and
appearing in the night.
It is thought that if families are behaving improperly that Aitu will
send an illness which is characterized by chills, fever, and bouts of
delirious behavior. Curses may be effected by herbal remedies
administrated by local specialists.
Some Aitu are significant only to a particular family or village,
taking the form of birds, fish, or game animals, these often become
taboo items for the group that recognizes them as spiritually
important.
Religion
Samoans were long regarded by
other Polynesian people, as
having no religion.
When Christian missionaries
came to Samoa in the early 19th
century they were met with very
little resistance. Some chiefs
argued that this new religion
ought to be quickly accepted, as it
brought with it the promise of
acquiring valuable material goods
.
They also thought that war might
be prevented by embracing
Christianity
Christianity was the means to
successfully convert entire
villages.
The church became the focal
point of community life
Samoa is now almost entirely
Christian, but there still remains
great affection for and knowledge
about their own local spiritual
traditions and mythology.