Learning Samoan at UH reconnect the heritage

By Jordan Savusa

“To learn another language is to learn another life.”
The Samoan language has crossed 4,000 years of generations, forging ideals and traditions, creating an identity for a people.  However, Samoans who do not live with their cultural influences may not understand or speak the language.  In fact, the new Samoan generation may have chosen another language, with its own ideals and customs. 

Disregarding the language is to disconnect from the life; where you cannot understand the reverend’s sermons in Samoan, or when Papa speaks of old Samoa.  And every relative asks, “E te alu I fea?” and you to have shamefully say, “Sorry, I don’t speak Samoan.”   The identity of Samoa could be lost.

Fortunately, at the University of Hawai'i at Manoa, non-speaking Samoans have a chance to learn the language, which can reconnect them to their heritage.

“There is a significant population of heritage students in Hawai’i that are Samoan,” said John Mayer, assistant professor of Samoan at UHM.  “To some degree, they can speak and understand the language but never really had a chance to study the aspects of the culture.”

Important to learn

Mayer emphasized that without fully comprehending the Samoan language, the culture is “just like a snapshot, a picture on a wall,” meaning one can only see it from an outside perspective, but the language “enables Samoans to get back in the family, the culture.”

Maupenei Lemalu, a UHM student who is Samoan and presently taking one of Mayer’s language classes, said she is pleased to learn Samoan:  “I only used to speak a little bit cause I wasn’t really around Samoan besides my family.  It helped a lot.  Now I can speak to my Samoan friends over here, and I’ll talk to my family back home in New Jersey and they’ll be really surprised I know how to speak it.”

Mayer has an opinion why there was a drop in interest in Samoan between the generations. 

“The belief of Samoans in the early ‘50s, ‘60s, even early ‘80s was to go to school and learn English, to succeed and get a good job.”  He said Samoan families in Hawai’i believed that the children would learn Samoan in the family household, but the life of a Samoan family in Hawai’i is much different than families in Samoa, where everyone “thinks, feels, breathes Samoan.”

In Hawai'i, Mayer said children’s interests diverge from their parents, so language and culture can be obstructed.  However, Mayer has noticed that non-speaking Samoans may feel guilty about their choices.  “What I hear is, ‘I want to be a part of it.  I regret not learning.’ It connects them back to their past.”

Mayer said after taking the courses, the students “express this gratitude for having the opportunity to learn (Samoan).”

Mastery of the any language is important.  In the Samoan language, children usually do not speak in front of adults.  All they are supposed to do is observe and serve adults when the adults are speaking.  Selected adults must speak for an entire family.  However, if those children from the ’60s and ‘80s cannot speak correctly or even speak Samoan, elders might look upon those people as inferior.

Samoan courses are not just for Samoans.  In fact, John Mayer is a Caucasian from Ohio.

UHM also has the Samoan Fealofani Club. The club celebrates Samoan customs and heritage, “providing students with social activities as well as an opportunity to strengthen their cultural skills and to serve the community” said the club newsletter.  UHM is the only university in the US to offer a wide range of Samoan language and culture courses.