10 



Anthropological and historical documentation, including oral his- 

 tories passed down through generations have confirmed for us that 

 there was and is a set of native Samoan fishing practices focused 

 on a significant portion of the offshore and deepwater management 

 species, including tuna, sharks, mahi-mahi, wahoo, billfish, jacks, 

 snappers, ulua, groupers, and emperors. Samoan s historically had 

 and still have a continuing dependence on these species. These fish 

 provide nutrition, but are also an important contributions to the 

 maintenance of long-held traditions, customs and ceremonies. Fish 

 and the ability to nsh wisely and productively are very important 

 to Samoans and Samoan culture. 



There also clearly was and is a social and cultural framework re- 

 flecting cultural, social and religious values and traditions based on 

 fishing effort, tuatai status, the master fisherman, and the ceremo- 

 nial presentations of certain species to chiefs, pastors, and village 

 councils. 



The Samoan Islands were first settled nearly 3,500 years ago by 

 seafaring Polynesian ancestors. Archaeologists have found evidence 

 of coastal occupations dating back 2,400 years ago and evidence of 

 Samoan fishing for shark and snapper and other deep water fish. 

 While more archaeological work must be done before authoritative 

 statements regarding continuity in ancient fishing strategies can be 

 made, we Samoans know that our ancestors fished regularly for 

 these species and it was a way of life. 



Linguistic evidence and oral history have recorded the role of 

 fish, fishing and social relations in Samoan society. For example, 

 many commonly used proverbs are based on fishing practices, "o le 

 pa ua sala i le maga," which can be translated, the hook has been 

 torn off at the shaft, is an expression referring to losses easy to 

 bear, just as loss of the hook, "maga," is easier to bear than loss 

 of the shaft, "pa." 



Review of ethnohistories prepared by western anthropologists 

 show other evidence of the importance of fishing within our culture 

 such as bonito hooks. These nooks were elaborately crafted from 

 mother of pearl, turtle shell and "fausoga" bark. Bonito or skipjack 

 tuna fishing is a complex undertaking using specialized canoes and 

 gear. Samoans believe that bonito is a fish of high status, a fish 

 for chiefs and the great god Tagaloa. Linguistic evidence shows 

 that reference to bonito also served as a reference to chiefs. Bonito 

 fishing and the ceremonial distribution of the catch is only one ex- 

 ample of numerous fishing rituals that are very important to our 

 Samoan culture. 



The significance of the tautai or fishing specialist also reveals the 

 importance of fishing and the sea to Samoans. Samoans make a 

 clear distinction between authority over the land, held by matai, 

 and authority over the sea, the realm of tautai. The head tautai of 

 each village directed all aspects of bonito fishing, making all the 

 decisions, not only in bonito fishing but also with regard to fishing 

 regulations and customs. 



The most valuable system of fishery management in Samoa 

 today is the combination of the matai/tautai system of village gov- 

 ernment, as old as Samoa itself. The matai system functions with 

 each head of an extended family in a village being a village chief, 

 with a high chief representing the village as a whole, and other 



