Samoa
Excerpted from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
The Independent State of Samoa (conventional long form)
or Samoa (conventional short form) is a country comprising
a group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean.
Previous names are German Samoa from 1900 to 1914 and
Western Samoa from 1914 to 1997.
Official title: Malo Sa'oloto Tuto'atasi o Samoa,
(In Samoan), Independent State of Samoa (In English).
National motto: Faavae i le Atua Samoa (Samoa
is founded on God)
Official languages: Samoan, English
Capital: Apia, (13°35' S 172°20' W)
Head of State: Malietoa Tanumafili II (As at
October 2005)
Prime Minister: Tuila'epa Sailele Malielegaoi
(As at October 2005)
Area: 2944 km² 0.3% water; Ranked 165th
Population: 177,714, (Jul 2004 Est.); Density
60/km² Ranked 174th
Independence: January 1, 1962; (From New Zealand)
Currency: Tala (WST)
Time zone: UTC -11
National anthem: The Banner of Freedom
Internet TLD: .ws
Calling Code: 685
History
Migrants from Southeast Asia arrived in the Samoan islands
more than 2000 years ago and from there settled the
rest of Polynesia further to the east.
Contact with Europeans began in the early 1700s but
did not intensify until the arrival of English missionaries
and traders in the 1830s.
At the turn of the 20th century, the Samoan islands
were split into two sections.
The eastern islands became territories of the United
States in 1904 and today are known as American Samoa.
The western islands became known as German Samoa, then
Western Samoa after passing from German control to New
Zealand in 1914.
In 1962 Western Samoa became the first Pacific Island
country to regain its independence.
In July 1997, the Constitution was amended to change
the country's name from Western Samoa to Samoa.
Samoa had been known simply as Samoa in the United Nations
since joining the organization in 1976.
The neighboring U.S. territory of American Samoa protested
at the move, feeling that the change diminished its
own Samoan identity.
American Samoans still use the terms Western Samoa and
Western Samoans.
Politics
Since 1982, the majority party in the Fono has been
the Human Rights Protection Party (HRPP).
HRPP leader Tofilau Eti Alesana served as prime minister
for nearly all of the period between 1982 and 1998,
when he resigned due to health reasons.
Tofilau Eti was replaced by his deputy, Tuila'epa Sailele
Malielegaoi.
Parliamentary elections were held in March 2001.
The Human Rights Protection Party, led by Tuila'epa
Sailele Malielegaoi, won 30 of the 49 seats in the current
Fono.
The Samoa National Development Party, led by Le Mamea
Ropati, is the main opposition.
Other political parties are the Samoan Progressive Conservative
Party, the Samoa All Peoples Party, and the Samoa Liberal
Party.
Government
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.
Samoa's two high chiefs at the time of independence
were given lifetime appointments to jointly hold the
office of head of state.
Malietoa Tanumafili II has held this post alone since
the death of his colleague in 1963.
His eventual successor will be selected by the legislature
for a 5-year term.
The unicameral legislature, named the Fono, contains
49 members serving 5-year terms.
Forty-seven are elected from territorial districts by
ethnic Samoan districts; the other two are chosen by
the nation's non-Samoans on separate electoral rolls.
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.
The prime minister is chosen by a majority in the Fono
and is appointed by the chief of state to form a government.
The prime minister's choices for the 12 cabinet positions
are appointed by the chief 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 is the court of highest jurisdiction.
Its chief justice is appointed by the chief of state
upon the recommendation of the prime minister.
Geography
Samoa is located east of the international dateline
and south of the equator, about halfway between Hawaii
and New Zealand in the Polynesian region of the South
Pacific.
The Samoas are of volcanic origin and the total land
area is 2934 sq km, consisting of the two large islands
of Upolu and Savai'i which account for 96% of the total
land area, and seven small islets: Manono, Apolima,
Nuutele, Nuulua, Namua, Fanuatapu, Nuusafee and Nuulopa.
The main island of Upolu is home to nearly three-quarters
of Samoa's population and its capital city is Apia.
The climate is tropical with the average annual temperature
of 26.5°C, and a rainy season from November to April.
Economy
The economy of Samoa has traditionally been dependent
on development aid, private family remittances from
overseas, and agricultural exports.
The country is vulnerable to devastating storms.
Agriculture employs two-thirds of the labor force, and
furnishes 90% of exports, featuring coconut cream, coconut
oil, and copra.
Outside of a large automotive wire harness factory,
the manufacturing sector mainly processes agricultural
products.
Tourism is an expanding sector; more than 70,000 tourists
visited the islands 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.
Demographics
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 systems, and language,
which is believed to be the oldest form of Polynesian
speech still in existence.
Only the Maori of New Zealand outnumber the Samoans
among Polynesian groups (though virtually no full-blooded
Maori still exist).
98% of Samoans are Christians, divided among many different
churches, among them Methodist, Latter Day Saints, Roman
Catholic, and Seventh Day Adventists.
Hardly any other religious group exists in Samoa, except
for the Baha'is, which make up 2% of the population.
The King of Samoa, King Malietoa Tanumafili, is a Baha'i.
Culture of Samoa
Samoans are typically friendly and welcoming people.
They have a distinct culture in which they have great
pride.
Samoans have a communal way of life with little privacy:
they do all their activities together and even traditional
fales (houses) have no walls, and just use blinds made
of coconut leaves during the night or bad weather.
Up to 20 people may sleep on the ground in the same
fale; during the day the fale is used for chatting and
relaxing.
Family is viewed as an integral part of life.
The aiga or extended family lives and works together.
Elders in the family are greatly respected and hold
the highest status, and this may be seen at a traditional
Sunday umu (rock oven).
Sundays are traditionally a day of rest, and many families
congregate to share an umu together for a Sunday afternoon
meal.
In a traditional household, the older members of the
family will sit and eat first, and as the meal continues
the younger members and then children are invited to
eat.
The umu contains an abundance and variety of dishes
ranging from fresh seaweed and crayfish to baked taro
and rice.
Coconut appears in many Samoan dishes, for example palusami,
a parcel of corned beef, breadfruit, onions, taro leaves
wrapped in breadfruit leaves and coconut cream and baked
in the umu.
This is eaten in its entirety including the leaves,
and is rich in taste due to its coconut content.
Samoa is a deeply religious country despite ancient
Samoan culture being contrary to the Church's beliefs,
for example, belief in aitu (spirits).
Christianity is the main religion and there are many
churches to be found around the islands, and are often
full on Sundays.
Samoan handicrafts can be found at the craft market
and some shops.
These include the siapo (equivalent to the Fijian tapa)
which is made from beaten mulberry bark, and then patterns
or pictures are painted on with a natural brown dye.
Examples of pictures depicted are: fish, turtles, hibiscus
flowers.
The siapo may be used for clothing, for wrapping objects
and even simply for decorative reasons. Kava bowls are
sturdy, round wooden bowls made of varying sizes, and
have many short legs around it.
Kava is made up with water in the bowl and drunk socially
using coconut shells to scoop up the drink.
It is a ground natural extract from the pepper plant
root and is used for medicinal and slightly anaesthetic
properties.
Other handicrafts are fine mats, ornaments or jewellery
and hair accessories using naturally occurring materials
such as sea shells, coconut and coir.
The traditional Samoan dance is the Siva.
This is similar to the Hawaiian dance, with gentle movements
of the hands and feet in time to music and which tells
a story.
Other types of dance are modern dance by the younger
generations, at bars or nightclubs.
Traditional Samoan medicine is often practised as a
first-line before hospital medicine.
This is a type of alternative medicine using plant leaves
to massage the affected area.
The traditional ladies clothing is the puletasi which
is a matching skirt and tunic with Samoan designs.
The lava lava is a sarong which may be worn by men or
women.
They are of different patterns and colours, but tend
to be plain for men who may wear it as part of an official
uniform.
Some men have intricate and geometrical patterns tattooed
onto their lower body and upper legs.
The tattooing process is performed without any anaesthesia
and is said to be painful.
External links
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This page was retrieved and condensed from (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samoa)
October 2005 All text is available under the terms of
the
GNU Free Documentation License (see
Copyrights
for details).
About Wikipedia Disclaimers
This information was correct in October 2005. E. & O.E.
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