Module 1: Overview: Samoans in the United States
Have Samoans benefitted from their “enduring friendship” with the United States?
Sāmoa, an archipelago in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, has many creation origin stories. One involves Tagaloalagi, creator of the universe, looking down from his place in the sky. Tuli, his son, while flying in the shape of a bird across the surface of the ocean, could not find a place to rest, returned to his father and complained about it. Tagaloalagi then threw down a rock, forming Manuʻatele, a land mass for Tuli and himself to rest on.
Tagaloalagi thought it would be great to have even more resting places in the ocean and divided the rock further into fourteen islands and two coral atolls, creating the islands of Sāmoa—the sacred center. The Samoan people thrived as ocean-goers, grounded in faʻasāmoa, the Samoan way. But how did people get from this cluster of islands created by Tagaloalagi in the middle of the Pacific Ocean to the United States, and who exactly are Samoans?
In this module you will be introduced to who Samoan people are, where they are from, and how this group of islands in the Pacific Ocean is connected to the United States. This module will also introduce the concept of faʻasāmoa and discuss how cultural values and practices continue and thrive in Samoan communities in diaspora.
Who are Samoans?
How are Samoans connected to the US?
How are Samoan customs and values practiced in Samoan communities in the diaspora?
Parting of the Sāmoa Islands
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~680 characters or 100 words example as placeholder; max paragraph width is 772px. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur adipiscing elit Ut et massa mi. Aliquam in hendrerit urna. Pellentesque sit amet sapien fringilla, mattis ligula consectetur, ultrices mauris. Maecenas vitae mattis tellus. Nullam quis imperdiet augue. Vestibulum auctor ornare leo, non suscipit magna interdum eu. Curabitur pellentesque nibh nibh, at maximus ante fermentum sit amet. Quisque sagittis orci ut diam condimentum, vel euismod erat placerat. In iaculis arcu eros, eget tempus orci facilisis. Praesent lorem orci, mattis non efficitur id, ultricies vel nibh. Sed volutpat lacus vitae gravida viverra.
~680 characters or 100 words example as placeholder; max paragraph width is 772px. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur adipiscing elit Ut et massa mi. Aliquam in hendrerit urna. Pellentesque sit amet sapien fringilla, mattis ligula consectetur, ultrices mauris. Maecenas vitae mattis tellus. Nullam quis imperdiet augue. Vestibulum auctor ornare leo, non suscipit magna interdum eu. Curabitur pellentesque nibh nibh, at maximus ante fermentum sit amet. Quisque sagittis orci ut diam condimentum, vel euismod erat placerat. In iaculis arcu eros, eget tempus orci facilisis. Praesent lorem orci, mattis non efficitur id, ultricies vel nibh. Sed volutpat lacus vitae gravida viverra.
~680 characters or 100 words example as placeholder; max paragraph width is 772px. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur adipiscing elit Ut et massa mi. Aliquam in hendrerit urna. Pellentesque sit amet sapien fringilla, mattis ligula consectetur, ultrices mauris. Maecenas vitae mattis tellus. Nullam quis imperdiet augue. Vestibulum auctor ornare leo, non suscipit magna interdum eu. Curabitur pellentesque nibh nibh, at maximus ante fermentum sit amet. Quisque sagittis orci ut diam condimentum, vel euismod erat placerat. In iaculis arcu eros, eget tempus orci facilisis. Praesent lorem orci, mattis non efficitur id, ultricies vel nibh. Sed volutpat lacus vitae gravida viverra.
Beyond the Archipelago
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~680 characters or 100 words example as placeholder; max paragraph width is width of grid. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur adipiscing elit Ut et massa mi. Aliquam in hendrerit urna. Pellentesque sit amet sapien fringilla, mattis ligula consectetur, ultrices mauris. Maecenas vitae mattis tellus. Nullam quis imperdiet augue. Vestibulum auctor ornare leo, non suscipit magna interdum eu. Curabitur pellentesque nibh nibh, at maximus ante fermentum sit amet. Quisque sagittis orci ut diam condimentum, vel euismod erat placerat. In iaculis arcu eros, eget tempus orci facilisis. Praesent lorem orci, mattis non efficitur id, ultricies vel nibh. Sed volutpat lacus vitae.
~680 characters or 100 words example as placeholder; max paragraph width is 772px. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur adipiscing elit Ut et massa mi. Aliquam in hendrerit urna. Pellentesque sit amet sapien fringilla, mattis ligula consectetur, ultrices mauris. Maecenas vitae mattis tellus. Nullam quis imperdiet augue. Vestibulum auctor ornare leo, non suscipit magna interdum eu. Curabitur pellentesque nibh nibh, at maximus ante fermentum sit amet. Quisque sagittis orci ut diam condimentum, vel euismod erat placerat. In iaculis arcu eros, eget tempus orci facilisis. Praesent lorem orci, mattis non efficitur id, ultricies vel nibh. Sed volutpat lacus vitae gravida viverra.
The Samoan Way
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~680 characters or 100 words example as placeholder; max paragraph width is width of grid. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur adipiscing elit Ut et massa mi. Aliquam in hendrerit urna. Pellentesque sit amet sapien fringilla, mattis ligula consectetur, ultrices mauris. Maecenas vitae mattis tellus. Nullam quis imperdiet augue. Vestibulum auctor ornare leo, non suscipit magna interdum eu. Curabitur pellentesque nibh nibh, at maximus ante fermentum sit amet. Quisque sagittis orci ut diam condimentum, vel euismod erat placerat. In iaculis arcu eros, eget tempus orci facilisis. Praesent lorem orci, mattis non efficitur id, ultricies vel nibh. Sed volutpat lacus vitae.
~680 characters or 100 words example as placeholder; max paragraph width is width of grid. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur adipiscing elit Ut et massa mi. Aliquam in hendrerit urna. Pellentesque sit amet sapien fringilla, mattis ligula consectetur, ultrices mauris. Maecenas vitae mattis tellus. Nullam quis imperdiet augue. Vestibulum auctor ornare leo, non suscipit magna interdum eu. Curabitur pellentesque nibh nibh, at maximus ante fermentum sit amet. Quisque sagittis orci ut diam condimentum, vel euismod erat placerat. In iaculis arcu eros, eget tempus orci facilisis. Praesent lorem orci, mattis non efficitur id, ultricies vel nibh. Sed volutpat lacus vitae.
~680 characters or 100 words example as placeholder; max paragraph width is width of grid. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur adipiscing elit Ut et massa mi. Aliquam in hendrerit urna. Pellentesque sit amet sapien fringilla, mattis ligula consectetur, ultrices mauris. Maecenas vitae mattis tellus. Nullam quis imperdiet augue. Vestibulum auctor ornare leo, non suscipit magna interdum eu. Curabitur pellentesque nibh nibh, at maximus ante fermentum sit amet. Quisque sagittis orci ut diam condimentum, vel euismod erat placerat. In iaculis arcu eros, eget tempus orci facilisis. Praesent lorem orci, mattis non efficitur id, ultricies vel nibh. Sed volutpat lacus vitae.
~680 characters or 100 words example as placeholder; max paragraph width is width of grid. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur adipiscing elit Ut et massa mi. Aliquam in hendrerit urna. Pellentesque sit amet sapien fringilla, mattis ligula consectetur, ultrices mauris. Maecenas vitae mattis tellus. Nullam quis imperdiet augue. Vestibulum auctor ornare leo, non suscipit magna interdum eu. Curabitur pellentesque nibh nibh, at maximus ante fermentum sit amet. Quisque sagittis orci ut diam condimentum, vel euismod erat placerat. In iaculis arcu eros, eget tempus orci facilisis. Praesent lorem orci, mattis non efficitur id, ultricies vel nibh. Sed volutpat lacus vitae.
~680 characters or 100 words example as placeholder; max paragraph width is 772px. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur adipiscing elit Ut et massa mi. Aliquam in hendrerit urna. Pellentesque sit amet sapien fringilla, mattis ligula consectetur, ultrices mauris. Maecenas vitae mattis tellus. Nullam quis imperdiet augue. Vestibulum auctor ornare leo, non suscipit magna interdum eu. Curabitur pellentesque nibh nibh, at maximus ante fermentum sit amet. Quisque sagittis orci ut diam condimentum, vel euismod erat placerat. In iaculis arcu eros, eget tempus orci facilisis. Praesent lorem orci, mattis non efficitur id, ultricies vel nibh. Sed volutpat lacus vitae gravida viverra.
Glossary terms in this module
colonization Where it’s used
The act in which a group or country brings a region and its Indigenous people under its domination and control.
diaspora Where it’s used
The dispersal, movement, migration, or scattering of a people from their established or ancestral homeland.
Indigenous Where it’s used
Refers to someone or something that originates from a region, predating colonialism.
militarism Where it’s used
The ideology that a country should maintain a strong military power and be prepared to use it aggressively to secure its interests.
