Samoa

American  

[suh-moh-uh] / səˈmoʊ ə /

noun

1. a group of islands in the southern Pacific, the islands west of 170° W longitude constituting an independent state and the rest belonging to the U.S.

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Samoa British  

/ səˈməʊə /

noun

1. an independent state occupying four inhabited islands and five uninhabited islands in the S Pacific archipelago of the Samoa Islands: established as a League of Nations mandate under New Zealand administration in 1920 and a UN trusteeship in 1946; gained independence as Western Samoa in 1962 as the first fully independent Polynesian state; officially changed its name to Samoa in 1997; a member of the Commonwealth. Languages: Samoan and English. Religion: Christian. Currency: tala. Capital: Apia. Pop: 195 476 (2013 est). Area: 2841 sq km (1097 sq miles)

2. Also called: Samoa Islands.  a group of islands in the S Pacific, northeast of Fiji: an independent kingdom until the mid 19th century, when it was divided administratively into American Samoa (in the east) and German Samoa (in the west); the latter was mandated to New Zealand in 1919 and gained full independence in 1962 as Western Samoa, now called Samoa (as detailed in sense 1). Area: 3038 sq km (1173 sq miles)

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Samoa Cultural  

1. A group of volcanic (see volcano) islands in the south Pacific Ocean, approximately midway between Hawaii and Sydney, Australia, making up the independent kingdom of Western Samoa and the United States territory of American Samoa.

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Discover More

Samoa's tropical climate, mountainous scenery, coral reefs, and Polynesian culture make it a popular tourist destination.

Compare meaning

How does samoa compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• Samoa vs. American Samoa

Example Sentences

She recently moved to town from her native Samoa as part of a visa scheme that has seen hundreds of Pacific Islanders relocate to Australia for jobs.

From BBC

Utai represented both New Zealand and Samoa on the international stage.

From BBC

England's limitations were such that an Italy side which began 2023 ranked 12th in the world - lower than Samoa – still scored more tries across the calendar year, despite playing three fewer matches.

From BBC

"We've got six days between every game, which is a fair preparation period," said the Australian, whose team have been drawn in a pool with France, Samoa and the United States.

From Barron's

England won home series against Tonga and Samoa in the following two years but then lost all three Ashes Tests to Australia on home soil last autumn.

From BBC