I’ve been hanging out with my uncle lately. He’s a pretty intense kinda guy. He’s loud, laughs like thunderclaps – or sometimes suffocation – and he tells those long, drawn out jokes with such conviction the anticipation kills you… and then the punchline is hit or miss depending on how well you get Samoan humour. […]
Samoan Proverb – Sorted like a fishing net in the morning
As the heart of the Pacific ocean, it makes sense that so many of Samoa’s alagaupu & muagagana (proverbs & idioms) use the imagery of fishing. Like this one: O le upega e fili i le po, ‘ae tatala i le ao Its literal translation: The fishing net is knotted (or braided) at night, but […]
Alagaupu ma Muagagana – Samoan Proverbs and Expressions
My grandfather was a diligent note-keeper. He was a faiava, which means he lived with my grandmother in her village (rather than his own), and he kept several notebooks worth of hand-written records on her family’s history and titles. This grandfather was also a gifted orator. He died when I was very young, but I […]
