American Samoa Genealogy

Guide to American Samoa ancestry, family history and genealogy: birth records, marriage records, death records, census records, family history, and military records.

Country Information
American Samoa is an unincorporated territory of the United States in the Pacific Ocean whose nearest neighbors are the Cook Islands, Tonga, and Samoa. The official languages are Samoan and English.

American Samoa Map
Genealogy records are kept on the local level in American Samoa.

Jurisdictions
Genealogy records are kept on the local level in American Samoa. American Samoa is divided into three districts: Eastern, Western, and Manu'a. It also has two unorganized atolls, Swains Island and Rose Atoll (which is uninhabited). These districts and atolls are divided into 74 villages.

Naming Conventions
Samoan names are often part of the Matai title system. Here are several resources:
 * Nobility - This is a FamilySearch Wiki article on nobility and how that factors into people's Matai names
 * Naming Conventions in Samoa -- Wikipedia section of Fa'amatai (the chiefly system of Samoa)
 * Trying to Understand Matai Titles/Surnames -- a message board article at Ancestry.com
 * Names of villages in American Samoa -- some of these village names may be used in the Matai titles
 * An account of Samoan History up to 1918 -- contains a lot of matai title name history

FamilySearch Resources
Below are FamilySearch resources that can assist you in resourcing your family.
 * Facebook Communities - Facebook groups discussing genealogy research
 * Learning Center - Online genealogy courses
 * Historical Records
 * Family History Center locator map