Picturesque Legends of Samoa

Sun (Auckland), Volume 1, Issue 110, 30 July 1927, Page 24

Picturesque Legends of Samoa

SAMOA, so much in the political picture of late, has some picturesque native legends. One of these concerns the origin of man. Malamagaga’e, or Dawn-of-the-East, came in contact with Malamagagaifo, or Light-of-th e-West, whence came Lupe, or Spirit-of-the-Dove. This dove sat on Papatu, the rock which was brought from the bottom by Tagaloa (who founded the earth amid the waters of the ocean), and there sprang A’alua, or firm-root, which evolved to solid rock. Theii came Papaele, or soft rock, which evolved to Papasosolo, or spreading rock, and formed the grass. Grass was made by the fue (convolvulus) and begat two grubs—male and female —from which sprang the human race.

Tuitonga took to wife a daughter of the Fuifiti (relates the Hon. O. F. Nelson) , and they had issue one Lau-fofa-e-toga, a girl. This Laufofa, hearing of the wonderful beauty of Tupailelei, came to Samoa to seek his hand. On arrival there, she found he was not the handsome man he was reputed to be, so she accepted his brother, Tupainatuna. When she was ripe to give birth to. her first child, she asked to be taken to Tonga for her confinement. On the way to Tonga they met with a heavy storm and their boat passed Tonga and landed in Fiji. A boy was born who was named Vaasilifiti, which means “The boat over-reached herself to Fiji.” In the fulness of time again, she agreed to let Tupainatuna bring her back to Samoa, but just as Samoa was sighted, she gave birth to a girl, who was named Samoa-ua-fotu, or “Samoa is sighted.” For short, she was known as “Fotu,” hence the village of Safotu. Before the advent of the white man, the Samoans lived mostly some distance from the sea, and not along the coast, as they do now. They came to the sea only to fish and to fetch sea-water for food purposes. The chief from Solosolo came from this bay with a party of his fishermen, and, finding it a good fishing place at the time, they built huts by the seashore and stayed for a few days. A daughter of one of the leading chiefs, with her retinue of girls, came down to take sea-water to the village, and found these huts and the fishing party. She went back to the village and •eported the bay to be inhabited, or, in samoan, Ua apia le faga, the word api signifying “habitation.” The origin of the coconut tree is coupled with the legend of. an eelman with a handsome face, whom a beautiful Samoan girl fell in love with. The girl’s parents fled right