All three islands are high islands: volcanic remnants rising out of the sea 14° south of the equator. The islands are elevated and mountainous. In contrast to most places in the world, the population of these islands has been decreasing steadily for decades. In the 1930s some 20% of the population of American Samoa lived in the Manua Islands. By the 1980s, only 6% were located there. Emigration is the consequence of a lack of economic opportunities and a desire of young people to participate in the more modern lifestyle offered on Tutuila. All the land of Manua is owned communally by Samoan families of Manua. This includes the National Parks lands which are only leased to the US National Parks system for 50 years.
History
Samoan oral historical traditions state that Manu'a was a ruling center of a large Polynesian empire which included all of the Samoan archipelago, and other nearby islands such as Tonga and Fiji. The traditional capital of Manua is the village of Taū, on the island of Taū. The Manua Group is now part of the US Protectorate of American Samoa. Samoa aligned its interests with the U.S. in a Deed of Succession, signed by the Tui Manua on July 16, 1904 at the Crown residence of the Tuimanua called the Faleula in the place called Lalopua. Cession followed the Tripartite Convention of 1899 that partitioned the eastern islands of Samoa from the western islands of Samoa. In 1903, Manu'a had a total population of approximately 2,000 residents. The Manu'a Hurricane of 1915 is particularly notable of two reasons. It was the first time the U.S. Congress voted to send financial aid to American Samoa, and it was the first time the American Red Cross made a donation to American Samoa.
Society and culture
The history of Manua is said in Samoan oratory to contain the origins of Samoan and Polynesian culture, and the genealogy of Polynesians east of Samoa is said to have originated in Manua. In traditional belief the sun rises over Samoa at Saua on the island of Taū, where the coral reef is supposed to be always yellow from the sun, and it sets at Falealupo the western-most village on the island of Savaii in Samoa. This journey of the sun is strongly related to traditional beliefs and defines Samoa Sasae and Samoa Sisifo. The term Fa'asamoa describes "The Samoan Way", or traditional Samoan way of life The sovereign of Manua was called the Tui Manua. The last Tui Manua was Tuimanua Elisara of the early 20th century. Tuimanua Elisara died on July 2, 1909. The title Tui Manua technically still exists although there is no titleholder; Tuimanua Elisara desired before his death that the title die with him. It was the U.S. government position at the time that his title changed to District Governor upon the hoisting of the U.S. flag at Taū on June 5, 1900. However, titles and holdings were not obliterated when the islands became a U.S. territory, and the title and estates of Tuimanua remain under the custody of the Anoalo clan. Today, many families of Manua rely on income from family members working in Tutuila and in the United States. The local diet is generally healthier than in Tutuila, with less reliance on imported American and New Zealand tinned foods, and a greater reliance on local fishing and farming.
Language
The people of Manua speak the Samoan language and utilize the "t".
