20 Fascinating Facts About Samoa

1. Samoa is an island nation located in Oceania made up of nine volcanic islands.

2. Just two of the islands – Savai’i and Upolu – account for more than 99% of the country’s land with around 95% of the population living on the two islands.

3. Lapita village has the oldest evidence of human occupation in Samoa, with carbon tests dating the site to around 1000BC. The village is partially submerged in a lagoon on the island of Upolu.

4. In 1722, Dutch navigator Jacob Roggeveen became the first European to explore Samoa, although it’s likely that whalers, pirates, and escaped convicts had previously visited unofficially.

5. Samoa was annexed by Germany in 1899 and then taken over by New Zealand in 1914 which administered the country until independence.

6. In 1962, Western Samoa became completely independent, becoming the first Pacific island nation to do so.

7. In 1997, Western Samoa changed its name to Samoa. The move caused some tension with American Samoa as the change implied Western Samoan authority over the Samoan archipelago.

8. More than a hundred star-shaped stone platforms have been discovered by archaeologists in Samoa. It is understood these platforms, known as ‘star mounds’, were used to trap wild pigeons, a hobby of matai (chiefs).

9. Samoa is the world’s ninth most obese country with 77% of adults classified as overweight.

10. In 2009, Samoa became the first country in decades to officially switch from right- to left-side driving. The change was made to bring Samoa in line with Australia and New Zealand as it is cheaper to import cars from there than from right-side-driving countries such as the US or Europe.

11. In 2011, Samoa (along with Tokelau) jumped forward one day and skipped December 30th. By moving to the west of the International Date Line, Samoa would be just one hour ahead of New Zealand and only three hours ahead of eastern Australia, rather than nearly a day behind both.

12. As such, Samoa is only 164km and a 30-minute flight away from “yesterday”. Despite only a short distance separating Samoa from its closest neighbor, American Samoa, the countries are on either side of the International Dateline. This also means Samoa celebrates the new year a whole day earlier than American Samoa.

13. Oddly, this wasn’t the first time Samoa had changed its calendar. In 1892, the country did the opposite and shifted to the east side of the dateline. As such, Samoa celebrated 4th July – US independence day – twice.

14. There is a “third gender” in Samoa known as fa’afafine which translates as “in the manner of a woman” and has long been recognized and accepted in Samoan culture. Genetically male, fa’afafine live as women and are taught the traditional duties of Samoan women.

15. Hollywood actor and ex-professional wrestler Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is half-Samoan. Johnson performed the Siva Tau in his recent movie, Fast & Furious Presents Hobbs & Shaw.

16. Scottish author, Robert Louis Stevenson, most noted for Treasure Island (1881) and The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1886), lived in Samoa from 1890 to his death in 1894. His home is now a museum.

17. King Malietoa Tanumafili II, who ruled Samoa from 1962 for 45 years, was the world’s third-longest reigning monarch. He was 94 when he died in 2007.

18. Samoa’s flag is made up of a red background with a blue rectangle in the corner featuring the Southern Cross constellation – which can be seen in many Southern Hemisphere national flags – in white. The white stands for purity, the blue for freedom, and the red for courage.

19. Kilikiti, an adapted form of cricket, is Samoa’s national sport. The game was brought to Samoa by English missionaries and seafarers in the 19th century and features two teams of batters, bowlers, and fielders, but has different bats, balls, a scoring system, and bigger stumps.

20. The word tattoo is believed to originate from Samoa. Dating back centuries, the Samoan “tatau” is regarded as a right of passage for many Samoans. The male tattoo, known as pe’a, covers the body from the waist to the knees and represents the journeys of ancestors from Asia to Polynesia.

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