American Samoa

American Samoa (Amerika Sāmoa or Sāmoa Amelika) is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the, southeast of the sovereign state of. The main (largest and most populous) island is, with the Islands, , and  also included in the territory. American Samoa is part of the Samoan Islands chain, located west of the, north of , and some 300 s (500 km) south of. To the west are the islands of the group. The showed a total population of 57,291. The total land area is 200.22 km² (77.305 sq mi).

Pre-Western Contact
Although many historians debate it, many believed that the Samoan Islands were originally inhabited as early as 1000 BC. Samoa was not reached by European explorers until the eighteenth century. The pre-Western history of Eastern Samoa (now American Samoa) is inextricably bound with the history of Western Samoa (now independent Samoa). The Islands of American Samoa has one of the oldest histories of Polynesia, in connection with the  title, connected with the histories of the archipelagos of, Tonga, the Cook Islands, Tokelau and elsewhere in the Pacific, where Manu'a once had influence. During the Tongan occupation of Samoa, Manu'a was the only island group that remained independent. The islands of Tutuila and were politically connected to 'Upolu island in what is now independent Samoa. It can be said that all the Samoa islands are politically connected today through the chiefly system and through family connections that are as strong as ever. This system of the faamatai and the customs of originated with two of the most famous early chiefs of Samoa, who were both women and related,  and.

Imperialization
Early Western contact included a battle in the eighteenth century between French explorers and islanders in Tutuila, for which the Samoans were blamed in the West, giving them a reputation for ferocity. Early nineteenth century Rarotongan missionaries to the Samoa islands were followed by a group of Western missionaries led by of the  London Missionary Society in the 1830s, officially bringing Christianity to Samoa. Less than a hundred years later, the became the first independent indigenous church of the South Pacific.

In March of 1889, a naval force invaded a village in Samoa, and by doing so destroyed some American property. Three American warships then entered the Samoan harbor and were prepared to fire on the three German warships found there. Before guns were fired, a typhoon sank both the American and German ships. A compulsory was called because of the lack of warships.

As a U.S. Territory
International rivalries in the latter half of the nineteenth century were settled by the 1899 in which Germany and the U.S. divided the Samoan. The U.S. formally occupied its portion—a smaller group of eastern islands with the noted harbor of —the following year. The western islands are now the independent state of Samoa.

After the U.S. took possession of Samoa, the built a  on Pago Pago Bay for its Pacific Squadron and appointed a local Secretary. The navy secured a Deed of Cession of Tutuila in 1900 and a Deed of Cession of in 1904. The last sovereign of, the , was forced to sign a Deed of Cession of following a series of US Naval trials, known as the "Trial of the Ipu", in Pago Pago, , and aboard a Pacific Squadron gunboat.

After World War I, during the time of the in Western Samoa (then a New Zealand protectorate), there was a corresponding American Samoa Mau movement, led by Samuel Sailele Ripley, who was from Leone village and was a WWI war veteran. After meetings in America, he was prevented from disembarking from the ship that brought him home to American Samoa and was not allowed to return. The American Samoa Mau movement having been suppressed by the US Navy, in 1930 the US Congress sent a committee to investigate the status of American Samoa, led by Americans who had had a part in the overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom.

In 1938, famous aviator and his crew died on the  S-42  over Pago Pago, on a survey flight to. Sometime after take-off the aircraft experienced trouble and Musick turned it back toward Pago Pago. As the crew began dumping fuel in preparation for an emergency landing a spark in the fuel pump caused an explosion that tore the aircraft apart in mid-air.

During World War II, U.S. Marines in Samoa outnumbered the local population, having a huge cultural influence. Young Samoan men from the age of 14 and above were combat trained by US military personnel. As in WWI, Samoans served in WWII as combatants, medical personnel, code personnel, ship repairs, etc.

After the war, Organic Act 4500, a U.S. -sponsored attempt to incorporate Samoa, was defeated in Congress, primarily through the efforts of Samoan chiefs, led by. These chiefs' efforts led to the creation of a local legislature, the which meets in the village of Fagatogo, the territory's ' and ' capital. (See the Capital City section below for more information on Fagatogo.)

In time, the Navy-appointed governor was replaced by a locally elected one. Although technically considered "unorganized" in that the has not passed an  for the territory, American Samoa is self-governing under a constitution that became effective on,. The U.S. Territory of American Samoa is on the, a listing which is disputed by territorial government officials.

Politics
Politics of American Samoa takes place in a framework of a , whereby the  is the , and of a pluriform. American Samoa is an unincorporated and of the United States, administered by the,. Its constitution was ratified 1966 and came into effect 1967. is exercised by the government. is vested in the two chambers of the legislature. The American political parties (Republican and Democratic) exist in American Samoa, but few politicians are aligned with the parties. The is independent of the executive and the legislature.

There is also the traditional village politics of the Samoa Islands, the "fa'amatai" and the "fa'asamoa", which continues in American Samoa and in independent Samoa, and which interacts across these current boundaries. The Fa'asamoa is the language and customs, and the Fa'amatai the protocols of the "fono" (council) and the chiefly system. The Fa'amatai and the Fono take place at all levels of the Samoan body politic, from the family, to the village, to the region, to national matters. The "matai" (chiefs) are elected by consensus within the fono of the extended family and village(s) concerned. The matai and the fono (which is itself made of matai) decide on distribution of family exchanges and tenancy of communal lands. The majority of lands in American Samoa and independent Samoa are communal. A matai can represent a small family group or a great extended family that reaches across islands, and to both American Samoa and independent Samoa.

Nationality
Persons born in American Samoa are American, but not United States s. Such status is only conferred on people born in the districts of American Samoa and Swains Island, but not to people born in unorganized atolls.

Samoans are entitled to elect one to the United States House of Representatives. Their delegate since 1989 has been   They also receive delegates to the  and  National Conventions.

Geography


American Samoa is located within the geographical region of. With a total land area of 199 km² (123.7 sq miles), it is slightly larger than the. Consisting of five, rugged volcanic islands and two s, it is frequently hit by typhoons between December and March, due to its positioning in the South Pacific Ocean. In addition, Rose Atoll, located in American Samoa, is the southernmost point in the territory of the United States

American Samoa is administratively divided into three s and two "unorganized" atolls. The districts and unorganized atolls are subdivided into 74 villages. is the capital of American Samoa. It is one of the largest villages and is located on the eastern side of Tutuila island in Ma'oputasi County district #9. Some have mistakenly cited as the capital due to the fact that is listed in the  as the official.

Economy
Employment on the island basically falls into three relatively equally-sized categories of approximately 5,000 workers each: the public sector, the two, and the rest of the private sector. There are only a few federal employees in American Samoa and no active military personnel (there is an unit, however); the overwhelming majority of public sector employees work for the American Samoa Government. The two tuna canneries ( and ) export several hundred million dollars worth of canned tuna to the United States. In early 2007 the Samoan economy was highlighted in the as it was not mentioned in the  bill, at the request of the Samoan delegate to the,.

The has, since inception, contained special provisions for American Samoa, citing its limited economy. Since the American set based on the recommendations of a Special Industry Committee meeting bi-annually. Originally, the Act contained provisions for other territories, which were phased out as those territories developed more diverse economies.

Demographics
American Samoa is small enough to have just one, 96799. The island contains 23 s and six s, all of which are operated by the. , founded in 1970, provides post-secondary education on the islands.

Culture
The culture in American Samoa is almost basically the same as in Western Samoa (Upolu). The U.S. military and agricultural occupation distinguishes and civilization of American Samoa from the sovereign Samoa.

Sports
About 30 ethnic Samoans, many from American Samoa, currently play in the. A 2002 article from ESPN estimated that a Samoan male (either an American Samoan, or a Samoan living in the 50 United States) is 40 times more likely to play in the NFL than a non-Samoan American.

A number have also ventured into professional wrestling (see especially ).

The of  is  in American Samoa.

is considered one of the newest teams in the world. It also has the distinction of suffering the worst loss in international soccer history: they lost to 31-0 in a  qualifying match on.