The title Tui Manuʻa was the title of the ruler or

paramount chief A paramount chief is the English-language designation for a king or queen or the highest-level political leader in a regional or local polity or country administered politically with a Chiefdom, chief-based system. This term is used occasionally ...

of the

Manuʻa Islands The Manua Islands, or the Manua tele (Samoan: ''Manua tele''), in the Samoan Islands, consists of three main islands: Taū, Ofu-Olosega, Ofu and Olosega. The latter two are separated only by the shallow, 137-meter-wide Āsaga Strait, and are now ...

in present-day

American Samoa American Samoa is an Territories of the United States, unincorporated and unorganized territory of the United States located in the Polynesia region of the Pacific Ocean, South Pacific Ocean. Centered on , it is southeast of the island count ...

. The Tuʻi Manuʻa Confederacy, or Samoan Empire, are descriptions sometimes given to Samoan expansionism and projected hegemony in

Oceania Oceania ( , ) is a region, geographical region including Australasia, Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Outside of the English-speaking world, Oceania is generally considered a continent, while Mainland Australia is regarded as its co ...

which began with the founding of the Tui Manu'a title. Traditional

oral literature Oral literature, orature, or folk literature is a genre of literature that is spoken or sung in contrast to that which is written, though much oral literature has been transcribed. There is no standard definition, as anthropologists have used v ...

of Samoa and Manu'a talks of a widespread Polynesian network or confederacy (or "empire").

History

The Tui Manu'a is the oldest title of Ancient Samoa. According to Samoan oral histories, the first Tui Manu'a was a direct descendant of the Samoan supreme god,

Tagaloa In Samoan mythology, Tagaloa (also known as Tagaloa-Lagi or Tagaloa, Lagi of the Heavens/Skies) is generally accepted as the supreme ruler,

. In Samoan lore, the islands of Manu'a (Ofu, Olosega, and Ta'u) are always the first lands to be created or drawn from the sea; consequently the Tui Manu'a is the first human ruler mentioned. This "senior" ranking of the Tui Manu'a title continues to be esteemed and acknowledged by Samoans despite the fact that the title itself has not been occupied since the American takeover in the early 20th century.

The Tui Manu'a Confederacy

Traditional

of Samoa and Tonga speaks of a widespread Polynesian network or confederacy (or "empire") that was prehistorically ruled by the successive Tui Manu'a dynasties. Manu'an genealogies and religious oral literature also suggest that the Tui Manu'a had long been one of the most prestigious and powerful paramounts of the Pacific and the first pre-eminent ruler of all Samoa. Oral history suggests that the Tui Manu'a kings governed a confederacy of far-flung islands which included

Fiji Fiji, officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists of an archipelago of more than 330 islands—of which about ...

Tonga Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania. The country has 171 islands, of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in the southern Pacific Ocean. accordin ...

as well as smaller western Pacific

chiefdom A chiefdom is a political organization of people representation (politics), represented or government, governed by a tribal chief, chief. Chiefdoms have been discussed, depending on their scope, as a stateless society, stateless, state (polity) ...

s and

Polynesian outliers Polynesian is the adjectival form of Polynesia. It may refer to: * Polynesians, an ethnic group * Polynesian culture, the culture of the indigenous peoples of Polynesia * Polynesian mythology, the oral traditions of the people of Polynesia * Polyn ...

such as

Uvea The uvea (; derived from meaning "grape"), also called the uveal layer, uveal coat, uveal tract, vascular tunic or vascular layer, is the pigmented middle layer of the three concentric layers that make up an eye, precisely between the inne ...

, Futuna,

Tokelau Tokelau (; ; known previously as the Union Islands, and, until 1976, known officially as the Tokelau Islands) is a dependent territory of New Zealand in the southern Pacific Ocean. It consists of three tropical coral atolls: Atafu, Nukunonu, an ...

, and

Tuvalu Tuvalu ( ) is an island country in the Polynesian subregion of Oceania in the Pacific Ocean, about midway between Hawaii and Australia. It lies east-northeast of the Santa Cruz Islands (which belong to the Solomon Islands), northeast of Van ...

. Commerce and exchange routes between the western Polynesian societies is well documented and it is speculated that the Tui Manu'a dynasty grew through its success in obtaining control over the oceanic trade of currency goods such as finely woven ceremonial mats, whale

ivory Ivory is a hard, white material from the tusks (traditionally from elephants) and Tooth, teeth of animals, that consists mainly of dentine, one of the physical structures of teeth and tusks. The chemical structure of the teeth and tusks of mamm ...

" tabua",

obsidian Obsidian ( ) is a naturally occurring volcanic glass formed when lava extrusive rock, extruded from a volcano cools rapidly with minimal crystal growth. It is an igneous rock. Produced from felsic lava, obsidian is rich in the lighter element ...

and

basalt Basalt (; ) is an aphanite, aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the planetary surface, surface of a terrestrial ...

tools, chiefly red feathers, and seashells reserved for royalty (such as polished

nautilus A nautilus (; ) is any of the various species within the cephalopod family Nautilidae. This is the sole extant family of the superfamily Nautilaceae and the suborder Nautilina. It comprises nine living species in two genera, the type genus, ty ...

and the egg cowry).

Decline and Isolation

Eventually, the maritime empire began to decline and a new empire rose from the South. In 950 AD, the first Tu'i Tonga 'Aho'eitu started to expand his rule outside of Tonga. Samoa's Savaii, Upolu and Tutuila islands were to eventually succumb to Tongan rule, and would remain part of the empire for almost 400 years. However, as the ancestral homeland of the Tu'i Tonga dynasty and the abode of deities such as Tagaloa 'Eitumatupu'a, Tonga Fusifonua, and Tavatavaimanuka, the Manu'a islands of Samoa were considered sacred by the early Tongan kings and thus were never occupied by the Tongans, allowing for it to remain under Tui Manu'a rule. By the time of the tenth Tu’i Tonga Momo, and his successor, Tuʻitātui, the Tu'i Tonga's empire had grown to include much of the former domains of the Tui Fiti and Tui Manu'a. The expulsion of the Tongans in the 13th century from neighbouring Upolu and Savaii would not lead to the islands returning to Tui Manu'a but to the rise of a new dominant polity in the western isles: the Malietoa, whose feats in liberating Samoa from the Tongan occupants led to the establishment of a new political order in Upolu and Savaii which remained unchallenged for nearly 300 years. Although the Tui Manu'a would never again regain rulership of the surrounding islands, it is permanently held in high esteem as the progenitor of the great Samoan and Tongan lineages.

Colonization and the "Abolition" of the Tui Manu'a title

The Manu'a islands were grouped with Tutuila and Aunu'u as the United States possession now called

. The presidency of the United States, and the military authorities of the US Navy, supplanted the native administrative role of the Tui Manu'a, through the arrests of chiefs of the Tui Manu'a and two trials of the Tui Manu'a, one on an American warship off the coast of Ta'u, called the "Trial of the Ipu". On 6 July 1904 Tui Manu'a Elisala officially ceded the islands of Manu'a to the United States through the signing of the Treaty of Cession of Manu'a. He was relegated the office of Governor of Manu'a for the term of life and the understanding that the Tui Manu'a title would follow him to the grave. He died on 2 July 1909. After a fifteen-year break, the office was revived in 1924 when Chris Young, a member of the Anoalo clan of the Tui Manu'a family and the brother of Tui Manu'a Matelita who reigned between 1890 and 1895, was named Tui Manu'a by the general assembly of the ''Faletolu'' and ''Anoalo''. American officials were worried that the Manu'ans were restoring a "king" who would cause trouble for the administration. Governor

Edward Stanley Kellogg Edward Stanley Kellogg (August 20, 1870 – January 8, 1948) was a United States Navy Captain (United States)#U.S. Navy, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Public Health Service, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Captain who served as the ...

opposed the bestowal and had the new Tui Manu'a brought to Tutuila where he was prevented from exercising the powers of his office. The Governor did not recognise the title on the basis that a monarchy was incompatible within the framework of the

Constitution of the United States The Constitution of the United States is the Supremacy Clause, supreme law of the United States, United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, on March 4, 1789. Originally includi ...

, stating that the previous Tui Manu'a had pledged under duress to be the last person to hold the title. The descendants of Tui Manu'a are numerous.

List of Tui Manuʻa

#Satiailemoa #Tele (brother of Satiailemoa) #Maui Tagote #Maugaotele #Folasa or Taeotagaloa #Faʻaeanuʻu I or Faʻatutupunuʻu #Saoʻioʻiomanu (Saʻo or eldest son of Faʻaeanuʻu I) #Saopuʻu (second son of Faʻaeanuʻu I) #Saoloa (third son of Faʻaeanuʻu I) #Tuʻufesoa (fourth son of Faʻaeanuʻu I) #Letupua (fifth son of Faʻaeanuʻu I) #Saofolau (sixth son of Faʻaeanuʻu I) #Saoluaga #Lelologatele (eldest son of Saofolau) #Aliʻimatua (eldest son of Lelologatele) #Aliʻitama (second son of Lelologatele) #Tui Oligo (grandson or son of Aliʻitama's daughter) #Faʻaeanuʻu II (eldest son of Tui Oligo) #Puipuipo (second son of Tui Oligo) #Siliʻaivao (third son of Tui Oligo) #Tuimanufili (daughter of Faʻaeanuʻu II) #Faʻatoʻalia Manu-o-le-faletolu (eldest son of Tuimanufili) #Segisegi (son of Faʻatoʻalia) #Siliave (daughter of Faʻatoʻalia) #Tui-o-Pomelea (son of Siliave) #Tui-o-Lite (or Tui Aitu) (son of Tui-o-Pomelea) #Toʻalepai (son of Tui-o-Lite) #Seuea (daughter of Toʻalepai) #Salofi (brother of Seuea) #Levaomana (son of Salofi) #Taliutafapule (son of Salofi and brother of Levaomana) #Taʻalolomana Muaatoa #Tupalo #Seiuli #Uʻuolelaoa (killed in a war with Fitiuta) #Fagaese #Tauveve #Visala #Alalamua # Matelita or Makelita (1872–1895), r. 1891–1895 # Elisala or Elisara (died 1909), r. 1899–1909 # Chris (Kilisi) Taliutafa Young (1924)

References

Bibliography

* {{cite book , last= Isaia , first= Malopaʻupo , title= Coming of Age in American Anthropology: Margaret Mead and Paradise , publisher= Universal-Publishers , location= Boca Raton, Florida , year= 1999 , isbn = 978-1-58112-845-1 , url= https://books.google.com/books?id=WfbGcAsZOKMC *McMullin, Dan Taulapapa. 2005. "The Passive Resistance of Samoans to US and Other Colonialisms", article in "Sovereignty Matters

University of Nebraska Press. * Office of the Governor. 2004. ''Manu'a ma Amerika''. A brief historical documentary. Manu'a Centennial. 16 July 1904. 16 July 2004. Office of the Governor, American Samoa Government. 20 p. * Samoa New

* Linnekin, Hunt, Lang & McCormick (University of Hawaii Pacific Islands Cooperative Botanic Studies Institut

Tui Manua, Manua Former monarchies of Oceania