American Samoa as a fantasy map

American Samoa reimagined as a fantasy map. This map is part of the Integral States Project, an art series that encourages reflection about the actual, pre-colonial history of these landscapes as well as the indigenous peoples who called them home. Proceeds benefit native charities.

 You’re very welcome to snag a free copy. Please rate if you like it to help others find these. Thanks! Prints are available at: https://www.redbubble.com/people/aldayuan

 Project website: https://integralstatesproject.com. 

The Samoan islands, now split between American Samoa and Samoa, were settled 3500 years ago by the Austronesian expansion. The peoples of the Samoan islands interacted with frequently with the people of nearby Fiji and the kingdom of Tonga, sometimes warring with them and sometimes intermarrying with them. Samoan folklore tells of two women from Fiji who introduced the tools necessary to create tatau “to strike,” which is also the origin of the word tattoo in English. Later, the warrior queen Nafanua took possession of the four major titles and established the foundation of the Samoan cultural tradition, the fa’asamoa, a method of decentralized control.