CLOTHING

For this section, I want to talk about both traditional attire, but also modern attire and how Samoan culture meets these more modern clothes. I also want to touch on traditional dance attire and how that can vary from the traditional clothes. And majority of this will also carry onto the next topic of ie lavalavas and siapos, because of it’s overlap (fabrics are used to make clothing, I know, it’s a shocker).

Puletasi

Puletasis are traditional and formal Samoan attire. They’re worn everywhere, especially to church and special occasions. “Puletasi” is the word more typically used for women’s attire. This usually consists of a skirt– that can be a wrap around or a skirt with an elastic band, and a top. The two can be made from multiple materials, but the overall concept of using materials that have Samoan iconography on it is typical. The styles can also vary– like having a patterned top paired with a solid color matching skirt or a mix of solid color and patterned fabrics. Sometimes, more often seen nowadays, puletasis can refer to dresses made with fabrics that have Samoan iconography.

‘ie lavalava

‘Ie lavalavas are a fabric that are more typically worn, in English I think people call them sarongs. Lots of times people will wear them while doing chores or just doing everyday things. But they’re also worn to ‘cover up’, it’s more of a respect thing. You’ll often see people wearing them at a place with a bunch of other Samoans. Similar to puletasis, ‘ie lavalavas (99.9% of the time) have Samoan iconography on them. But majority of the time these designs are put on the fabric through a process called ‘elei. ‘Elei is similar to screen printing, but the design is carved on a wood board (traditionally) or a rubber block and is then put under the fabric. Then the paint is spread on top of the fabric.

However, before ‘ie lavalavas were created, it was more common for Samoans to wear ‘ie togas (fine mats) or siapos (tapa cloths).

Siapo

Siapos, or tapa cloths, are a significant part of Samoan culture. They have multiple uses and are very important to the Samoan culture. And before the ‘ie lavalavas were made and used, these were what people wore. They had wrapped these around their waists like an ‘ie lavalava.

An important element with the siapos are the symbols and icons put on to them. Which is where we get our inspiration from for designs of ‘ie lavalavas and fabrics, etc. Which I’ll explain more in the tataus and tribal patterns. But these elements make up the siapo. The siapo is so well known because of its designs and geometrical patterns.

Traditional Dance Attire

Traditional dance outfits can be a mix-and-match type of deal. It truly depends on the dancers and what’s available to them and the dance that they’re performing. Lots of times they’ll wear puletasis, typically uniforms. And taupous/manaias wear a ie toga (fine woven mat), along with their tuiga, a taulima, a ‘ula nifo, and a siapo wrapped around their waist.

While traditional clothes like puletasis can be worn as dance attire,

Taupou Ofu Siva (dance clothing)

‘ula nifo (teeth necklace)

‘ie toga (finely woven mat) as ofu siva (dance clothes) tuiga (headdress) taulima (armband/bracelet) titi (feather ‘overskirt’)

**sometimes a titi (kiki) is worn instead of a siapo

Modern Attire

When referring to ‘modern attire’ I mean things like sweaters/hoodies, to t-shirts, sneakers/shoes. A lot of which have adapted Samoan tribal designs and things that reflect on our culture. There’s been a lot of designs that take on these modern/streetwear looks and add Samoan iconography and elements that elevate the design and make them more personal.

And after, I’ll talk about how this relates to tataus and how it fits into how Samoan-Americans identify with themselves and embrace themselves in their culture.