Samoan is a Malayo-Polynesian language spoken in the country of Samoa and also in the US territory of American Samoa. It is the third most spoken language in New Zealand. Other languages in this language group include Tagalog, Maori and Malagasy.
The famous author of “Treasure Island”, Robert Louis Stevenson, fell in love with Samoa on his travels, and lived his last years there. He is buried on Mount Vaea.
Interestingly, self-deprecation is used in Samoan as a way of flattering the listener. For example, when praising the child of another woman, a mother might politely refer to her own children as “ui” (piglets).
