Pava'ia'i is a village in the Western District of

Tutuila Tutuila is the main island of American Samoa (and its largest), and is part of the archipelago of Samoan Islands. It is the third largest island in the Samoan Islands chain of the Central Pacific. It is located roughly northeast of Brisbane, A ...

Island in

American Samoa American Samoa ( sm, Amerika Sāmoa, ; also ' or ') is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the island country of Samoa. Its location is centered on . It is east of the Internationa ...

. It borders Mapasagafou and Faleniu to the north, 'Ili'ili to the east,

Futiga Futiga ( sm, Fūtiga , pronounced "Futinga") is a village in the southwest of Tutuila Island, American Samoa. It is located inland, seven miles southwest of Pago Pago, between the villages of 'Ili'ili and Puapua. It is in Tualatai County. Futi ...

to the south, and Malaeloa to the west. It is located in

Tuālāuta County Tuālāuta County is a county in the Western District in American Samoa. It is the largest and also the most populated county in American Samoa. The county is represented by two seats in the Senate and two seats in House of Representatives in the ...

. Pava'ia'i is home to several fales that are used by villagers for dance practice, meetings, fa’alavelaves, and other events. It is also home to Pava’ia’i Elementary School, the largest elementary school in American Samoa.

History

In early 1942, the main body of the U.S. Marines arrived in American Samoa. The construction of quarters at

Utulei Utulei or Utulei is a village in Maoputasi County, in the Eastern District of Tutuila, the main island of American Samoa. Utulei is traditionally considered to be a section of Fagatogo village, the legislative capital of American Samoa, and is ...

was incomplete, as was Camp Samuel Nicholas in Faga'alu. Some of the Marines of the 2nd Division were therefore moved into the village of Pava'ia'i. A soldier later wrote about his experience in the village: “We found the Samoan people to be exceptionally clean people… The residents… were gracious and attempted to do everything possible to make the presence of the Marines pleasant.” In July 1974, a village fire destroyed the Haleck's West Building, which included Haleck's Island Motors, Video Samoa, Intercontinental Trading Company, and J & J World Travel. There was a quick replacement of the compound with new facilities in the early 1980s. In 2005, government employees digging an area in Pavaiai village uncovered the remains of an ancient village 6.4 feet (2 m) below the surface. The senior archeologist for the American Samoa Power Authority, David Addison, told reporters that the artifacts are estimated to be between 1500 and 2000 year-old.

History

Demographics

Notable people

References