In
Samoan mythology, Tagaloa (also known as Tagaloa-Lagi or Tagaloa, Lagi of the Heavens/Skies) is generally accepted as the supreme ruler,
Journal of Pacific History, Vol. 33, Mo.2, J998 the creator of the universe, the chief of all gods and the progenitor of other gods. Tagaloa Lagi dwelt in space and made the Heavens the sky, the land, the seas, the fresh water, the trees and the people. Samoans believed Tagaloa created nine heavens.
Tagaloa's role as paramount deity in the Samoa pantheon bears similarities to the position of
Ta'aroa in Tahiti and
Io Matua Kore in New Zealand.
The arrival of missionaries and Christianity in Samoa from 1830 saw the Samoan Lagi gods like Tagaloa replaced by the Christian deity. Or rather, the acceptance of the Christian God, Ieova/Jehovah, by the Samoan people can be seen as an expansion or extension of their spiritual hierarchy, where the god Tagaloa and all the gods beneath him are now seen by the Samoan people as being subject to the dominion of the
Judeo-Christian
The term ''Judeo-Christian'' is used to group Christianity and Judaism together, either in reference to Christianity's derivation from Judaism, Christianity's recognition of Jewish scripture to constitute the Old Testament of the Christian Bibl ...
God. Otherwise, the still existing traditional family genealogies (which include the old religious hierarchy within them) and culture of Samoa would be meaningless and dead.
Tagaloa in mythology
Tagaloa features in many of Samoa's myths and legends.
* Tagaloa rolled stones from heaven. One became the island
Savai'i and the other stone became the island of
Upolu
Upolu is an island in Samoa, formed by a massive basaltic shield volcano which rises from the seafloor of the western Pacific Ocean. The island is long and in area, making it the second largest of the Samoan Islands by area. With approximate ...
.
Legends of Maui by W. D. Westervelt, p.25
* One legend tells that Tagaloa had two children, a son Moa and a daughter Lu. Tagaloa's daughter Lu had a son, also called Lu. Young Lu argued with his uncle Moa and fled to earth which he called Samoa.
Dictionary of Polynesian mythology by Robert D. Craig, p. 28
* Tagaloa is the father of gods
Lagi (mythology), Lagi
* Tagaloa is a sun god whose son Alo'alo married Sina, the daughter of Tuifiti. There is a legend about a figure called
Tui Fiti in the village of
Fagamalo on the island of Savai'i.
* In
Manu'a, Tagaloa sent a vine to earth that resulted in maggots which became human beings.
* Tagaloa brought a war god called Fe'e (octopus) to Manu'a
* In
Samoan architecture, Tagaloa also features in a story which explains why Samoan houses are round.
See also
*
Io Matua Kore paramount deity in New Zealand Māori mythology
*
Ta{{okinaaroa paramount deity in Tahitian mythology
*
Tangaloa Tongan mythology
*
Tangaroa
Tangaroa (Māori; Takaroa in the South Island dialect; cognate with Tagaloa in Sāmoan) is the great atua of the sea, lakes, rivers, and creatures that live within them, especially fish, in Māori mythology. As Tangaroa-whakamau-tai, he exercis ...
New Zealand Maori mythology
*
Kanaloa Hawaii mythology
References
Samoan deities
Polynesian deities
Creator gods