The Turtle and the Shark is one of Samoa's most cherished stories, and it has been animated beautifully by Ryan Woodward in the style of siapo, or Samoan tapa barkcloth. [more inside]
posted by barnacles on Jan 24, 2012 - 7 comments

Alofa'aga mo se Tausaga Fou fiafia, manuia ma saogalemu. Ia manuia fuafuaga uma mo le tausaga fou 2012. American Samoa just changed time zones. But if you missed New Years, you still have, at the time of this writing, 50 minutes until New Years in Pago Pago.
posted by twoleftfeet on Jan 1, 2012 - 13 comments

Samoa has seized headlines by moving the International Date Line--leaping forward a day and confusing readers in the process. [more inside]
posted by -->NMN.80.418 on May 11, 2011 - 52 comments

Kava: "a slightly bitter, slightly frothy, aromatic, resinous brew capable of inducing tranquility and an ultimate sense of wellbeing" [more inside]
posted by Paragon on Jan 4, 2011 - 45 comments

Samoan government Minister Hans Joachim "Joe" Keil is suing US immigration agents and the State Department. [more inside]
posted by sycophant on Nov 11, 2009 - 66 comments

The Independent State of Samoa has just 200,000 citizens, but you can be sure many are a little less than placid today. They are undergoing a shift that few nations have done; one that may be as jarring as when Jekyll changes to Hyde. They are about to change lanes. In a big way. [more inside]
posted by Hardcore Poser on Sep 7, 2009 - 46 comments

slappity-slappity-BOOM!-slappity-slap-slap-slap-BOOM!... Slap dancing from opposite ends of the earth! In Samoa, it’s called the Fa'ataupati; it’s said to have originated out of the need to swat insects away. And in the Tyrolean Alps, it’s called the Schuhplattler, supposedly the oldest surviving dance in Europe. And on MetaTalk, it goes like this, amirite? [more inside]
posted by not_on_display on Apr 20, 2008 - 16 comments

The Papalagi. "Then many of these thought-mats are tied into bunches and pressed together ('books' the Papalagi calls them) and sent to every part of that great country. Very soon, everyone who takes these thoughts into themselves is infected. They devour these thought-mats as if they were sweet bananas ... [Y]oung and old gnaw at them like rats gnawing at sugar cane. That is the reason why so few of them are still able to think reasonable, natural thoughts, like those that every honest Samoan has.'
posted by No-sword on Aug 24, 2007 - 14 comments