Taema and Tilafaiga

The Samoans wanted to learn the art of tattooing. They assigned the two famous Siamese twins, Taema and Tilafaiga to go to Fiji to learn that skill.

The girls soon swam to Fiji where they learned and mastered the art of tattooing and became very proficient and skillful. They then decided it was time for them to return home. The boat that they were in was destroyed in a storm and the mast fell down and struck the twins, tearing them apart. Tilafaiga got her name from the mast of the ship which separated them. Her sister didn’t have a name. A piece of human excretion passed by and her sister inherited the name of Taema.

While they were swimming back to Samoa, Tilafaiga was abducted by her uncle, Saveasiuleo and bore him an alualutoto (blood clot) which later became Nafanua, the goddess of war. Her sister Taema married a chief in Tutuila named Muamuamoa. He was very handsome except for the fact that his head had rooster combs growing from it. He always came late at night and left early in the morning. One morning early, Taema awoke and lifted the pola and discovered his physical defects, the two sisters returned to Western Samoa.

Ads they were swimming back, they came to Solosolo and they got a towel there. As they swam they sang the chant, “tattoo the woman, not the man.” As they approached Falealupo, they were hungry and they were distracted by a large cam shell (faisua). They dived for the clam they somehow forgot their song. Upon returning to the surface, they reversed the chant, Tattoo the man and not the woman.” So this is why the men are tattooed and not the women in Samoa. How fortunate! It would have distorted the skin of our beautiful women.

The above information was taken (as written) from the MCKAY-FALE located in Sauniatu (on the island of Upolu) Western Samoa.