Samoa

Situated in the South Pacific Ocean and west of the International Date Line, SAMOA is an island country in the western region of the Samoan Islands. American Samoa, which is mentioned briefly at the bottom, occupies the eastern part. Formerly known as Western Samoa (Samoa i Sisifo), Samoa is officially known as the Independent State of Samoa. Samoa is east of Wallis and Futuna, south of Tokelau, and north of Tonga. The unitary parliamentary republic achieved independence from New Zealand on Monday, January 1st, 1962.

● ● ● ● ●  People and Places  ● ● ● ● ●  Samoa's population is approximately 190,000 as of 2016. About 96% of all Samoans are Christians — especially Roman Catholic — followed by worshippers of the Bahá'í Faith, Buddhism, and Chinese Universism. Samoa's official languages are Samoan (a Polynesian language) and English, while the literacy rate is over 97%. Most citizens are ethnic Samoans, while most others are Euronesians (Polynesian and European mix) or have European ancestry. The Samoan people are said to be easygoing and happy and may celebrate minor and major occasions with bountiful feasts featuring local recipes. Samoa's capital is Apia (Āpia), which has over 37,000 residents. Other communities include Asau, Sala'ilua, and Satupaitea on Savai'i island and Falelatie, Matautu, Solosolo, and Ti'avea on Upolu island. Samoan people's currency is the Samoan Tala (WS$), and its ISO 4217 currency code is WST.

● ● ● ● ●  Land and Water Features  ● ● ● ● ●  Samoa is comprised of several small islands and two larger main islands: Savai'i to the west and Upolu to the east. Both main islands have a tall peak near the center. Designated as the largest shield volcano in the South Pacific islands, Mount Silisili stands at 1,858 meters (6096 feet) in elevation on Savai'i, while Mount Fito stands 1,113 meters (3652 feet) on Upolu. Savai'i features other volcanoes — including Mata o le Afi ("eye of the fire"), Mauga (Mount) Afi, and Mauga Matavanu — which have not erupted in at least one century. Regardless, volcanic eruptions are always possibilities, and therefore residents and the government ideally would maintain emergency plans to prepare. Rising sea levels, their associated flooding, tsunamis, and earthquakes are other possible concerns in Samoa. Apolima Strait diagonally separates Savai'i and Upolu from the southwest and northeast direction, and it contains several islands including Apolima, Manono, and Nu'ulopa.

Meanwhile, American Samoa is an unincorporated territory belonging to the United States. The main island is Tutuila, and American Samoa's capital is Pago Pago. American Samoa shares the same official languages with Samoa. Samoans use the United States Dollar.