THE TRADITIONAL STRUCTURE OF SAMOAN SOCIETY

Te Ao Hou, November 1957, Page 40

THE TRADITIONAL STRUCTURE OF SAMOAN SOCIETY The basic unit of Samoan social organization was the lineage, or ‘clan’, whose members traced their origin to a common ancestor. Its leader was the matai, the holder of a title conferred by the group on one of its members. In the course of time, such groups sub-divided; and new titles were created for the various sections of the lineage. One consequence of this process has been the gradual differentiation between major and minor titles. Those which can be traced back to the earlier history of the lineage have more standing than newer titles created during the later stages of segmentation. In addition, of course, other factors have helped to give special standing to certain titles and families; inter marriage with other important families; successful alliances in time of war; or the outstanding leadership of individuals. In these ways, the traditional structure of Samoan society was formed. At its apex, were the leaders of the Tupua and Malietoa families, able to represent, in terms of social status, large sections of These placards were displayed everywhere in Samoa during the United Nations Mission in 1947 when self-government for the Samoans was just about to be granted. (nps photograph)

the Samoan people. Only a little less important were several other families, whose leaders have from time to time emerged as national figures. Below them, were a great number of matai, with varying degrees of standing. Some were entitled to recognition as leaders in their districts; others had an important voice in the affairs of their villages, while the holders of a great many minor titles had influence mainly within their own family groups. This account represents the situation only in a very elementary way. For reasons of space, I have made no mention of the differences in status and functions between the two classes of matai titles, those of chiefs and orators; nor have I touched on the considerable differences between district and district. These matters do not, however, materially affect the argument of this article. Administratively, the basic unit in Samoa was the “village” community (which might, in fact, consist of several separate hamlets or a single settlement). The village was controlled by a fono (or council) of the local matai. They made decisions on matters of common concern, arranged for village works to be undertaken, received visitors, and punished offenders. Most importantly, they protected the proper balance between the various family groups constituting the village. Thus, a matai who was seeking to increase his own influence and that of his family by actions of a presumptuous or aggressive character, would be severely dealt with…generally by the temporary exclusion of the family from participation in village affairs. Similarly, any individual who harmed the status of a matai…for example, by openly flirting with his wife…would be punished with special severity. Apart from the matai, the other principal groups in the village (untitled men, wives of matai, unmarried women, etc.) had their own organisations, which were concerned both with purely social activities and with the performance of the common duties they owed to the village as a whole. Above the village level, Samoan society was organised on similar lines, but functions were, in fact, more limited. For example, the fono of a district would be concerned with alliances in times of war and with matters such as disputes between the holders of major district titles. Indeed, both in regard to individual matai and to councils, the higher one went the more one became concerned with matters of status and ceremonial and the less with those of administration. The individual matai, for example, had a more or less unfettered control of the affairs of his own family. In the village fono, if his title were of adequate standing, there were many things he could get done, but he had to be more careful to observe the conventions. At the district level, the important title meant more in terms of formal recognition of status than in those of actual authority. And, at the highest level of all, when there was a tafa'ifa (or king) in Samoa…which was rarely…his position had to be defined in terms of supreme status alone. This social and political system was suited to the conditions in which it had grown up. For centuries, after the defeat of the Tongan invaders of an earlier period, Samoa was not threatened from outside. Internally, there were no forces at work to produce profound social change. The high degree of decentralisation of control was, thus, appropriate; and the preoccupation of Samoan leaders with the maintenance of a delicate balance in matters of family and district prestige was conducive to the preservation of order. But, with the arrival of Europeans in Samoa in the nineteenth century, the political needs of the country were greatly changed.