Tui Manu'a

An ancient prodominant title of the Manu'a islands of the Samoa Islands (Ta'u, Olosega, and Ofu Islands), which are now part of the United States Territory of American Samoa. At its peak over a millennium ago, the powerful and influential Tui Manu'a was the ruler of a Polynesian empire which included a significant part of western Polynesia including Fiji, Niue, Tokelau, Tuvalu, Tonga and Wallis and Futuna. The last titleholder was Tui Manu'a Elisala, who died in 1909. After a fifteen-year break in 1924 another title holder was declared and ordained but he was transported to the capital in 1924 by the American civil authorities and Governor of American Samoa Edward Stanley Kellogg and held under house arrest for the remainder of his reign. The genealogy of the title went back more than 1,000 years, and was only terminated with the colonization of Manu'a by the United States. The Tui Manu'a lineage is connected to various chiefly titles of the Pacific Islands, including the Tui Tonga and the Rarotonga chiefly lines. The Tui Manu'a was also a spiritual leader with many sa or tapu/taboo connected with the body and actions of the titleholder. The Tui Manu'a as a divine, godly and supernatural figure, is part of the legends of many fa'agogo or village stories throughout Samoa and among other island groups.

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