Faʻamatai

According to the traditional creation story of Samoa, all leadership and rule originated with the Tui Manu'a. Who resided in the easterly Manu'a islands, and was believed to be the son of Samoa's creator god Tagaloa. Two great families comprise what may be termed the aristocracy of Samoa: Sa Malietoa, and Sa Tupua. For a great length of time, the title of Tupu (Sovereign) was confined to members of the latter since the reign of Queen Salamasina. On the death of the Safe-o-fafine, the last king in the Sa Tupua line, the title remained in abeyance for a long time, as the line of succession was broken after Atua's defeat in war and the seat of power moved briefly from Lufilufi to Manono. ==Governance==

village with round meeting houses where matai meetings take place and open commons area (malae) for outdoor ceremonies. Samoa's chiefly system revolves around family and extended clans of kinship (ʻaiga), based on the culture's communal and extended family relationships. The term ʻaiga includes not only the immediate family (father, mother and children), but also the whole union of families of a clan and even those who although not related are subject to the family control. At the local level, much of the country's civil and criminal matters are dealt with by some 360 village chief councils, Fono o Matai, according to traditional law, a practice further strengthened by the 1990 Village Fono Law. Most Samoans live in villages consisting of groups of families with close ties and history. The influence of the matai is felt not only in the village but also in the district and even beyond. The active factor in the life of the village is the village council or fono o matai and its members are the matai. The fono of matai is the executive and judicial authority of every village in Samoa. If a matter is of importance the assembly is held on the malae, the open space in front of the village. The speakers address the assembly and stand to do so. The listeners are comfortably seated on mats. Those not taking part in these assemblies are described as tagatanuʻu (people of the village) and include untitled men, women and children. Democratic ideas do not prevail at these fonos and decisions are independent of majority or minority rule. The decision of one or more matai sili (senior matai) is decisive. The remainder who are merely at the fono to listen, agree with the decisions given. It is permissible for the minor matai to discuss the matter with and endeavour to try to influence the matai sili before the fono commences. Before the fono commences preliminary councils are held (taupulega) by the different groups and at these councils the single family heads exchange opinions and endeavour to convince each other and to create harmony in order that when the actual fono eventuates everything will move smoothly. Some matai are permitted to speak at these fono without having any right to make a decision. This applies to most Samoans in positions of public responsibility from the Prime Minister of Samoa to the country's Head of State, who is referred to as O le Ao o le Malo (the chieftain of the government). Colonial influences As matai head their families and represent their villages, communities and districts, important high-ranking title-holders came to play significant roles in colonial politics with the advent of western powers and rivalry in the 19th century. The colonial era saw Britain, Germany and the United States supporting different matai (such as Mataʻafa Iosefo and the youthful Malietoa Tanumafili I) in order to gain political influence in Samoa. This led to the colonial powers bestowing the European title of king upon their own candidate during the tumultuous years of the late 19th century, leading to warring among competing high-ranking matai in different districts. The Samoan term tupu, referring to paramount status over a particular region or the entire island group, has sometimes been translated incorrectly to the English language as "king" in the European sense. The relatively brief usage of the term "king" died out with the end of colonialism. In the early 20th century, matai leadership played a pivotal role in the pro-independence Mau movement which eventually led to Western Samoa's independence in 1962. ==Matai title==

, . (photo by Thomas Andrew) Each matai has a name () by and through which they exercise their rights in the family over which they preside. Matai names are for the most part very old ones and are handed down from generation to generation. Matai titles can be bestowed on one person or numerous family members who are distinguished from each other by their Christian name. It is common for each ʻaiga to have a number of matai titles, but one particular title will be the most important and serve as the main matai title. The title of a family matai which is peculiar and particular to that family is the subject of tradition and is faithfully recorded by the family and passed on from generation to generation. It sometimes happens that new names are for some reason taken and the old ones discarded or passed on to lesser or junior chiefs. In Samoan culture, the concept of serving and taking on the responsibility for the welfare of the family is integral to the faʻamatai system. Various members of the family are called upon in turn to support their matai in carrying out their role and responsibilities according to Samoan tradition, cultural obligations and duty. In former times the term matai applied only to tulafale, but over time the term has become applied to aliʻi generally. Central to Samoan culture is the recording of history and genealogy which was achieved through oral history before the introduction of a written language. Orator chiefs (tulafale) and speakers (failauga – 'speech-maker') are terms used for Samoans holding the position of speakers or mouthpieces of chiefs and they are found in all villages. They are also described as 'wayfinders who negotiate the relationships between different parties'. Important matai titles are also tied to certain orator matai titles. Orators serve the means of conveying the wishes of chiefs to the people or speaking on behalf of the family, village or district on important occasions. The orator is the recorder of family histories and pedigree (faʻalupega), genealogies (gafa) and events and is indispensable at public ceremonies. Tulafale have a number of ceremonial items associated with them. The fue (whisk), a specific necklace ʻulafala made from carpels of the pandanus fruit, and toʻotoʻo (long wooden staffs). Samoan gafa (pedigree, ancestors, descent) is central to family kinship and will usually commence from the person who first brought the name into prominence and caused it to be respected. It does not necessarily mean that the family commenced from the institution of a name or that the individual holding the title was the founder of the family. Former matai of the family have by comparison become unimportant and their names have fallen into disuse or become uninfluential. == Fine mats: ʻIe Tōga ==

There are many Samoan public events at which the distribution of mats will take place. Many of these mats, particularly the fine mats (ʻie tōga), are valued very highly both from a monetary point of view and also from a historical and sentimental viewpoint. The more important mats bear respected names. The most noteworthy occasions on which mats are presented are marriages, births and deaths and the bestowal of a chiefly title. ==Customary land==

village. village in Apolima Island (1890–1910). The matai of the family is the administrator and representative of the family property which includes customary land. Most of the population in Samoa, 65% overall, live with their families in villages on customary land. However, the 2006 Samoa census showed that 34 out of 48 political districts had more than 80% of households living on customary land with the lowest figures (25%) in the more densely concentrated urbanised area around the capital Apia. On the island of Savaiʻi, where there are fewer people and fewer signs of western material culture, 93% of the 43,142 population live on customary land. island and Falealupo at the west end of Savaiʻi have agreed to conservation covenants for their native forests. Much of the land under the government today was alienated or sold during colonialism and later came under the Samoa government when the colonial era ended. This includes large tracts of plantation land from the 19th century as well as later periods of colonial administration including German Samoa (1900–1914) followed by the New Zealand administration. This has resulted in ongoing court cases for land claims between matai and the government, such as that of the village of Satapuala over land by Faleolo International Airport, disputes which directly impact upon the country's national infrastructure. ==Matai selection==

women preparing ʻava, 1909 In effect, every Samoan, men and women, is an heir to a matai title pertaining to their kinship and ancestry. However, matai titles are not automatically passed from a matai to their children or direct descendants but are bestowed upon those whom the extended family agree will best serve their needs while also ensuring that different branches of the family are represented. A recent example of this Samoan custom and law is the stripping of the important Malietoa title from the son of the previous title holder, the late Head of State, Malietoa Tanumafili II (1913–2007). Following Malietoa Tanumafili II's death in 2007, one branch of the family bestowed the title upon his son Papaliʻi Faʻamausili Moli in the village of Malie. The other branches of the family filed petitions at the Land and Titles Court of Samoa claiming the bestowal invalid in breach of Samoan law. In June 2008, the court agreed and ruled the bestowal of the Malietoa title upon the son illegal, Architecture of Samoa dictates seating positions inside the meeting house during the title bestowal including the position of those making the kava being situated at the rear. Once the ceremony is completed, the new matai is henceforth called by their new name. In New Zealand, more people born in Samoa than any other foreign country officially change their names with the Department of Internal Affairs and it is believed that many of these are adding matai titles. Non-Samoans Matai titles are sometimes conferred upon non-Samoans as an honour by Samoan families and their villages. An example is the title of Seiuli conferred in 1993 by Samoa's Head of State, Malietoa Tanumafili II upon Barry Curtis, at the time Mayor of Manukau, a New Zealand city with a large Samoan population. Other non-Samoan New Zealanders bestowed with matai titles include prime ministers Robert Muldoon, David Lange and Jim Bolger, politician Winston Peters and Auckland businessman Dick Hubbard who holds the title Galumalemana. In 1988, American ethnobotanist Paul Alan Cox received the legendary title Nafanua from the village of Falealupo, where Cox had lived for many years and later helped to set up a covenant to protect the native rainforest. In 1978, the Governor-General of Fiji, Ratu Sir George Cakobau was bestowed the title Peseta by Matautu on Savaiʻi island during his visit to Tui Fiti's sacred ground. Ban Ki-moon was given the title Prince Tupua Ban Ki-moon of Siupapa Saleapaga on 2 September 2014 during the United Nations' Small Island Development Conference while serving as the Secretary General of the United Nations. ==Naming convention==

A matai title is always first in naming convention as the most important name for a titled individual. When a person is appointed a matai, they retain their Christian name in addition to their new matai title. The matai title is appended to the beginning of their name so that their Christian name follows their new matai title. As one person may hold a number of different matai names from different branches of their genealogy, the new names are also added before their Christian name, with no set order in terms of general usage. An example is Mataʻafa Faumuina Fiame Mulinuʻu I whose first three names reveal individual high chief titles and thereby his genealogy and the different villages and families to which he belonged; the Faumuina title from Lepea, the Fiame title from Lotofaga and the Mataʻafa title, one of the paramount names in the country. As more than one family member can be bestowed the same matai title, each person's Christian name serves to distinguish them from each other. Dividing a family title so that it is shared among more than one family member is also agreed upon by consensus. The Samoans explain this by saying that a man has a fasi igoa – a piece of the title. Usoaliʻi refers to brother chiefs, those men in the family union holding matai names. They may all enjoy the same rights or be under the control of one matai who is termed sao, in which case the other chiefs are referred to as tuaigoa. ==Women matai==

Of Samoa's total population of 192,126 (2016 census), 93,463 were female, comprising 48.6% of the population. In 2011, there were 1,766 female matai, 10.5% of the 16,787 matai living in the country. Prominent women matai in Samoa include scholar and historian Aiono Fanaafi Le Tagaloa (matai title Aiono), high chief and Prime Minister Fiamē Naomi Mataʻafa (matai title Fiame), former politician Gatoloaifaana Amataga Alesana-Gidlow (matai title Gatoloaifaana), writer Letuimanuʻasina Emma Kruse Vaʻai (matai title Letuimanuʻasina) and nurse and community leader Tuita'alili Vaitava'e Su'a Aloese-Moe. With many Samoans also living overseas in other countries, other prominent Samoan female matai include New Zealand former Member of Parliament Luamanuvao Winnie Laban (matai title Luamanuvao). ==Old age==

Seniority in years and old age is a respected status in Samoan society where elders, whether familiars or complete strangers, are referred to as tamā (father) or tinā (mother). In this cultural context, a retired matai usually enjoys the respect of their family and is referred to as the faatonutonu folau, the steersperson of the boat. In this case they do not actually do the steering but their advice is listened to and their family profits from their ripe experience. ==Untitled men==

) The Samoan appellation for a male person who is not a matai is a tauleʻaleʻa. The real meaning of the word, which is derived from the word leʻaleʻa (immature), is a young man who has not reached maturity. It is nowadays applied to any male person who is not a matai. In the past the term was sometimes used to indicate that any male person, even a matai, was not an old man. In this sense, tauleʻaleʻa signifies young or comparatively young, just as toeaʻina is used to signify that a man is aged or elderly (a respectful status in Samoa) whether he be a matai or a tauleʻaleʻa. It is permissible for a tauleʻaleʻa (an untitled man) to change his name as often as he wishes. A chance remark or an outstanding incident will often be the determining factor in naming a tauleʻaleʻa. This can apply to everyone else, including females in Samoa, where a family member, especially a child, might be called a new name to commemorate an important occasion. ==Disputes resolution==

Disputes over matai titles which cannot be resolved among family members within the wide extended ʻaiga are dealt with by the Land and Titles Court of Samoa which consists of cultural and judicial experts appointed by the Judicial Services Commission. The Land and Titles Court hears disputes over matai title succession as well as disagreements pertaining to customary land. The court derives from the Native Land and Titles Court put in place under the colonial German administration in 1901. Samoa's political stability is thought to be due in large part to the success of this court in hearing disputes. ==See also==