Teacher's Notes Student Activities Return to Contents Samoa is distinctively Polynesian in its culture. Most of its people live in the traditional villages that dot the coastline of the main islands, Upolo and Savaii. In these villages, people live according to 'faa Samoa' - the Samoan way of life. More than any other Polynesian people, Western Samoans choose to keep their closely knit village system alive.
Samoan society is based on the extended family system with several generations living together.
Meetings are regularly held in special houses where the matai decide the future of the village and the fate of villagers themselves. Although there are police and a government court, justice is chiefly carried out according to traditional laws. The buildings in the villages reflect the traditional way of life. Household items such as mats, baskets and ceremonial clothing are woven from natural materials decorated with patterns handed down through the generations. Carvings decorate the buildings, canoes and household wooden ware.