Samoa — books & literature

The story of Samoa

Samoa's human story begins around 1000 BCE, when Austronesian voyagers - the Lapita people - settled the archipelago, making it one of the cradles of Polynesian culture; Samoan oral tradition holds that Polynesia itself was 'born' here. For nearly three thousand years the islands developed the matai (chief) system and fa'a Samoa, the communal way of life still central today. Dutch explorer Jacob Roggeveen sighted the islands in 1722, and European traders, missionaries, and colonial powers followed through the 19th century, as Germany, Britain, and the United States competed for influence. The 1899 Tripartite Convention split the archipelago: Germany took the western islands, the US took the eastern group (American Samoa). New Zealand occupied German Samoa in 1914 and later administered it as a League of Nations mandate and UN trust territory, a period marked by the nonviolent Mau movement for self-rule and the 1929 Black Sunday shootings. On 1 January 1962, Western Samoa became the first Pacific Island nation to win independence in the twentieth century; it dropped 'Western' from its name in 1997. Modern Samoa balances its Christian faith, its matai governance, and global ties - even shifting the International Date Line in 2011 - while fa'a Samoa remains the framework for daily life.

Timeline — key moments

1. circa 1000 BCE

   Austronesian (Lapita) voyagers settle the Samoan islands.

2. 1722

   Dutch explorer Jacob Roggeveen becomes the first European to sight the islands.

3. 1830

   London Missionary Society missionary John Williams introduces Christianity.

4. 1899

   Tripartite Convention splits Samoa: Germany takes the west, the US takes the east (American Samoa).

5. 1914

   New Zealand occupies German Samoa at the outbreak of World War I.

6. 1929

   Black Sunday: New Zealand police kill members of the peaceful Mau independence movement in Apia.

7. 1962

   Independence from New Zealand (1 January) , the first Pacific Island nation to gain independence in the 20th century.

8. 1997

   Country's name officially shortened from Western Samoa to Samoa.

9. 2011

   Samoa skips 30 December entirely, moving to the west side of the International Date Line to align with Australia and New Zealand.

Top 10 things to know about Samoa

1. Samoa was the first Pacific Island nation to gain independence in the 20th century (1962).
2. The country consists of two main islands, Savai'i and Upolu, plus several smaller islands.
3. Samoan tatau (tattooing) , the pe'a for men and malu for women , is one of the oldest continuous tattoo traditions in Polynesia.
4. The 'ava (kava) ceremony opens formal occasions, especially the bestowal of matai chief titles.
5. In December 2011 Samoa jumped from the east to the west side of the International Date Line, skipping a whole calendar day.
6. Fa'a Samoa ("the Samoan Way"), built around the matai chief system and communal land, still shapes governance and daily life.
7. Rugby union and rugby league are central to national identity; the Manu Samoa team punches far above the country's size.
8. Samoan and English are both official languages.
9. Author Robert Louis Stevenson spent his final years in Samoa and is buried on top of Mount Vaea above Apia.
10. Most land in Samoa is held under customary communal tenure rather than individual title.

Famous people from Samoa

Say it in Samoa's language

Did you know?

• ★Samoa erased 30 December 2011 from its calendar entirely, jumping from the 29th straight to the 31st to switch sides of the International Date Line.
• ★In 2009 Samoa switched from driving on the right side of the road to the left , one of the few countries in modern times to make the change.
• ★A full pe'a (traditional male tattoo) can take dozens of painful hand-tapped sessions and traditionally marked a man's readiness to serve his family and village.

Samoa culture

• Fa'a Samoa ("the Samoan Way") centres on the aiga (extended family) and the matai chief system that still governs villages and land.
• The 'ava (kava) ceremony opens formal gatherings, especially the bestowal of matai titles.
• Traditional fale , open-sided houses with no walls , remain part of village life across the islands.
• Rugby union is close to a national religion; the Manu Samoa team is a major source of national pride.

Why read Samoa's books

Samoan storytelling runs from ancient fagogo (oral tales) and chiefly genealogies to a modern literature that put the Pacific on the world stage through writers like Albert Wendt. Samoa's shelves carry both threads forward.