Tamafaiga or Tamafainga (died 1829) was a Samoan king.
Tamafaiga was a war-priest from Manono Island who usurped the throne after the death of Safeofafine. He came to power after defeating Mataʻafa in 1827 or 1828. He ruled as a tyrant, and was worshiped as a god. The missionary John Williams reported that "he was the man in whom the spirit of the gods dwelt... the terror of all the inhabitants". He was killed by the people of the village of Fasito'o Uta after attempting to claim a daughter of their high chief as his hundredth wife. Following his death Malietoa decimated Aʻana as punishment, and eventually claimed the kingship.
Sources
- ^ John B. Stair (1983). Old Samoa. Papakura: R. McMillan. pp. 77–78. Retrieved 7 August 2021.
- ^ Albert Wendt (1965). 'Guardians and Wards' : (A study of the origins, causes, and the first two years of the Mau in Western Samoa.). Victoria University of Wellington. pp. 8–9. Retrieved 7 August 2021.
- John Williams (1837). A narrative of missionary enterprises in the South Sea Islands; with remarks upon the natural history of the islands, origin, languages, traditions and usages of the inhabitants. London: Snow. p. 85.
- Annabel Setefano (2019). The Fall of A'ana; Recollecting Pre-contact Trauma in Samoa (PDF) (M.Design). Auckland University of Technology. Retrieved 7 August 2021.
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