Samoa’s Iconic Fale:

How Culture Informs Architecture

By Francis (Peter) Higginson and Philippe Lair

© 2023 Francis Higginson, Philippe Lair, and Pernille Askerud
under exclusive license to La Loingtaine Publishing.
Illustrations: All drawings and photos by Philippe Lair unless otherwise indicated.

PHOTOS FROM THE BOOK

138 - Savai_i - Fagamàlo - Le Legoto Resort

71 - Upolu - Apia - Samoa college - postkort 3

107 - (6) - Upolu - Matàutu - finished thatch panel, coils of afa, and thatching needle

DESCRIPTION

‘SĀMOA’S ICONIC FALE: HOW CULTURE SHAPES ARCHITECTURE’
is a detailed description of how the traditional fale were constructed and how these buildings reflected Samoan culture and society.
The book draws on a long process of information-gathering and research related to these traditions and represents a unique overview of the topic. Thanks to the increasing digitalization of archives, it was possible for the authors to make use of hitherto little-known research and documentation by the missionaries and anthropologists who came to the Pacific islands in the late 19th century and recorded their impressions. In addition, the book was able to draw on recent academic research into Samoan traditional culture. Hence, the book pulls together insights that have not before been available in one place, fostering new knowledge and the identification of developments in these traditions that have so far been underexposed; for example, the o le Sa ceremony and the payments traditionally associated with fale construction. With its careful references to historical, anthropological, and architectural source material ‘SĀMOA’S ICONIC FALE’ emerges as a new, standard-setting reference on Samoan built heritage.
The building materials and the methods used to assemble a traditional fale differ considerably from western architectural practices: and because knowledge about fale construction and design is so deeply rooted in the Samoan language, Samoan words and expressions are used throughout the text along with the closest English equivalents.
The book is a personal testament to Peter Higginson’s years of experience living in Sāmoa as Head of the UNESCO Office for the Pacific States. Higginson has written a representation of Samoan culture and traditions that is both emotionally and intellectually sound in its attempt to represent the lives of others. The book makes clear that it is not simply a matter of recording a physical reality – the architecture and construction process of the traditional fale – but of artfully organizing these observations in ways that reveal the complex patterns of Samoan social life.
Richly illustrated with new and old photographs, the book falls in various parts. Part I describes Samoan traditional architecture in its social and cultural context – the builders and the mutual obligations between them and the future owners; the changing nature of the fale as cultural signifier of Sāmoa’s cosmogeny and its genealogical links to Tagaloa, the original God-builder; and how today’s use of the fale has changed its underlying emphasis from the links to the past to become a contemporary symbol of Polynesian identity. Part II includes almost a hundred line-drawings and photographs by Philippe Lair, offering a detailed step-by-step description of the architectural design and the construction process of the two most prestigious buildings of Samoan built heritage, the faletele and the faleafolau, as understood by a western architect – as well as descriptions that are closer to the understanding of the islanders themselves. The introductory Part and Part III feature complementary information including a literature review, maps, a note on the Samoan language used in the book, as wll as various appendices.
While elaborating the manuscript, it became increasingly evident that deep insight into the oral culture and traditional knowledge of the island is rapidly disappearing as Samoan society becomes integrated in the global world and economy. Hence the book may turn out to be a last-minute safeguarding of some of that knowledge and its potential for contributing to a deeper understanding of Samoan culture and society today.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

La’auli Francis (Peter) Higginson

Born in the United States and educated in the fields of international development education and project design, management and evaluation at Harvard (US), Sorbonne (France) and at UMASS-Amherst (US), Peter Higginson worked for nearly three decades in UNESCO’s Education Sector.

When, in 1983, UNESCO decided to open a regional Office for the Pacific States he was appointed Director of the new office in Sāmoa. Working throughout the region over the following decade he eventually made Sāmoa his home, marrying a Samoan, and even gaining the Samoan title of La‘auli.

Over the years he developed a keen interest in the tangible and intangible culture of the region. Today he lives with his family in Cambridge, MA and travels often to Sāmoa.

Philippe Lair

Philippe is co-founder of the architectural agency CODA ARCHITECTES established in 1988, which today has offices in Paris and Lyon. The company specializes in the rehabilitation of social housing with particular experience in high environmental and energy quality projects.

On a mission for UNESCO to Sāmoa in 1985 and 1986, he was nevertheless involved in a very different undertaking when has was tasked with documenting in words, drawings and photos, the building techniques and construction process of the traditional fale. It eventually led to the writing with Peter Higginson of the book ”The Samoan Fale” published by UNESCO in 1992. Since then, Philippe has visited Sāmoa several times each time refining further his understanding and documentation of the art of building a traditional fale.

INFORMATION & PURCHASE

Publisher: La Loingtaine Publishing
www.laloingtaine-publishing.com
Price: 90 €
ISBN: 978 4 9910659 0 3
Type of book: academic monograph with photos and illustrations (art book)
Format: 21 x 275 mm, softcover with open spine and dustjacket
Paper: 120 gsm Munken Lynx
Pages: 224
Date of Publishing: 2. October 2023
Printed by: Druckerei zu Altenburg GmBH
Key words:
Samoa, Fale, Polynesian Culture, Oceania, Pacific Cultural Heritage, Traditional Dwellings/Buildings, Social & Cultural Anthropology, Ethnography, Indigenous Pacific Research, Architecture, Traditional and Indigenous Design

To Purchase:
For copies please contact info@laloingtaine-publishing.com

We are currently setting up sales and distribution facilities in select bookshops and through Amazon platforms and expect it to be operational very soon.

What others say

Tui Atua Tupua Tamasese Ta’isi

The extensively-researched history contained in these pages is as timely as it is impressive in its own right since it records a great many aspects of my own culture – aspects that I consider nothing less than fundamental to an understanding of who we are and where we came from but aspects that are sadly either forgotten or misrepresented today.

Noting the level of detail and cultural sensitivity of the book’s narrative, it is all the more remarkable that it was written by two foreigners. Peter Higginson (the writer) hails from the US, and Philippe Lair is a French architect and photographer. Between them, they have over three decades of in-country experience and indeed, Higginson’s wife is Samoan, which on the face of it, clearly helped.

I take pleasure in commending this original work to both scholars of the history and culture that is reflected in our view of ourselves, what we simply call the “faaSamoa”, as well as to teachers of Samoan school children, both here in Samoa and abroad, who are seeking ways of enriching the instructional content of their lessons. It has been said that one challenge of today’s teachers is to prepare young Samoans for their future by helping them to recognize and warmly embrace the culture of their ethnicity. That being the case, they will find a goldmine of content in these pages.

Soifua

Richard A. Engelhardt

More than thirty years in the making, ‘Samoa’s Iconic Fale: How Culture Informs Its Architecture’ by co-authors Peter Higginson and Philippe Lair, is a comprehensive and original study of the Samoan fale (Council House). The lavishly illustrated text takes us on a journey across the islands’ architectural heritage starting 200 ago years in the era prior to European contact, through a period of cultural transition, to present-day expressions of the traditional architectural vocabulary of the fale for contemporary use in tourism, education, and diplomacy.

This is an impressive, standard-setting work for two compelling reasons. Firstly, the ambitious compilation of all available research on both technical and sociological aspects of the construction of the traditional Samoan fale is a heroic project in knowledge rescue and cultural survival. To data collated from previously published ethnographic compendia on Samoa, the authors have added many little-known and previously uncatalogued references. Synthesizing historical, anthropological, and architectural source material this publication will surely become the new, standard-setting reference on Samoan built heritage.

Secondly, the innovative juxtaposition of technical knowledge and cultural history vividly demonstrates that, in the Samoan context, intangible cultural traditions are the wellspring from which built architectural structures are created and which set the underlying parameters for change adaptation and innovation over time. In doing so, the authors have written a very original biography of the fale as a living architectural manifestation of Samoan cultural heritage as it has evolved through 200 years of transformation and adaptation.

Particularly strong features of this publication include:

Minutely detailed description of all technical aspects of fale construction including the elaborate and diagnostic lashing techniques which hold the key not only to the structural stability of these unique constructions but also embody the enduring cultural stability of this iconic architectural tradition, transmitted through hereditary inter-generational guilds of artisan-builders.

Insightful interpretation of fale construction as the physical embodiment of socio-cultural and economic relationships of status and power within Samoan society. Manifested in five elaborate ceremonies, the construction of a fale is carefully guided through a codified sequence of steps that are the pedagogical embodiment of orally-transmitted traditional knowledge honed by generations of practice, elaboration, and adaptation. The physical space thus created provides a tangible metaphor for the enduring cultural values of Samoan society through the ages.

Illustrating and substantiating the written text are very many excellent photographs – some historic other newly documented during the decades of the authors’ research. This extensive repository of visual data complements and completes the technical information and cultural history of other sections of this publication.

The result is a longitudinal study and detailed reference of Samoan heritage, elucidating how the fale — as the defining physical manifestation of traditional values — demonstrates the resilience of Samoan culture as it has responded and adapted to society’s evolving needs over a period of more than 200 years.

Rupert Maclean AO

This book, Samoa’s Iconic Fale, is an important book on an important subject.

The fale – an oval or circular thatched building featuring a domed roof and no walls – is the traditional building design found in Samoa and in some other countries throughout the Pacific region. In presenting a compelling analysis of the strong and enduring interrelationship between culture and architecture, La’auli Peter Higginson and Philippe Lair provide a comprehensive, yet at the same time intimate portrait of the impact of culture on architecture, by showcasing the evolution and importance of traditional architecture in the form of Samoa’s iconic Fale.

The book is lavishly illustrated by Philippe Lair with many black/white and colour photographs, and detailed technical line drawings of the building techniques, which highlight the beauty and majesty of the Fale Samoa.

These are findings of more than academic interest. The implications of this groundbreaking book for our understanding of the impact of culture on traditional architecture extend far beyond the island country of Samoa, where research for this publication was undertaken.

Importantly, the book also well documents and highlights the vanishing technical, vocational and design skills of those who built the Samoan Fale, and the blurred line that exists between technical and vocational skills, and art. The documentation of these skills and their links to the physical, intellectual, emotional, and creative faculties of a society is invaluable in ensuring a deeper understanding of Samoan culture and, more widely, of the cultural knowledge embedded in all kinds of craft practices throughout the world.

This book has much to teach us not only about the evolution and building of Samoa’s Iconic Fale but much else besides. It vividly and convincingly illustrates the organic relationship between culture, society and architecture, and helps improve our understanding about how and why other buildings in other societies, for example skyscrapers in New York, have evolved. As such this book deserves to be widely read and it is to be hoped that the book will find its way into the schools of the region.

Etienne Clément

.. contribution à la promotion de la diversité culturelle
par Etienne Clément, Directeur du Bureau de l’UNESCO pour les Etats du Pacifique (2013-2015)
Merci aux Editions La Loingtaine, à Mesdames Masako Mori Saulière et Pernille Askerud de m’avoir convié au lancement de leur premier livre! Le point de départ de cet ouvrage très original est un document existant, publié par l’UNESCO en 1992 sous le titre « The Samoan Fale ». Son auteur, F. L. Higginson (dit « Peter » Higginson), n’était autre que le Représentant de l’UNESCO dans le Pacifique, basé à Apia, capitale de Samoa. Les illustrations étaient déjà les excellentes photographies de Philippe Lair. La publication avait alors été reçue très favorablement par le monde académique des « Pacific Studies ». Elle figurait en bonne place dans la bibliothèque de l’UNESCO à Apia, lorsque j’y ai pris mes fonctions de Directeur en 2013. Mais le livre que vous avez entre les mains fut ensuite enrichi considérablement par Peter Higginson lui-même ainsi que par l’éditeur, Pernille Askerud. Leur contribution est majeure, fruit d’un travail rigoureux pour retrouver, analyser et transcrire des informations et données sur le « fale de Samoa » avec le brillant résultat que vous avez sous les yeux : un ouvrage mis à jour et bénéficiant de nouvelles photographies de Philippe Lair. Il présente un état aussi exhaustif que possible de la connaissance publiée et disponible sur ce sujet particulier. Nul doute qu’il constituera une référence essentielle pour les chercheurs sur le Pacifique et dans le Pacifique, et ce dans des domaines aussi différents que l’architecture, l’histoire, la sociologie, l’ethnologie, l’ingénierie, le patrimoine culturel, entre autres.
Il est toutefois déjà loin le temps de la première édition de cet ouvrage (1992) quand les « Pacific Studies » étaient menées essentiellement en dehors des Etats insulaires du Pacifique. De nos jours, plusieurs universités dans la région ont créé et développé des programmes d’étude et de recherche vivants et diversifiés dans les domaines que je viens de citer.
C’est le cas, bien entendu, de l’Université du Pacifique Sud (University of South Pacific) mais aussi de l’Université nationale de Samoa (Samoa National University) et en particulier du « Centre for Samoan Studies » animé par les Professeurs Leasiolagi Dr. Malama Meleisea et Dr. Penelope Schoeffel.
Ce livre est une contribution importante dans le domaine du patrimoine culturel à un autre titre, au-delà de Samoa et du Pacifique. En effet, il illustre de façon admirable l’interaction entre le patrimoine tangible (le bâti) et intangible (l’activité humaine autour de ce bâti) qui sont, dans le cas du fale, intimement liés : la société inspire l’architecture et celle-ci soutient et apporte un cadre pérenne à des modes de vie fragilisés par la modernité. Sur le plan international, le cadre juridique protégeant le patrimoine tangible (notamment la Convention dite « du patrimoine mondial » de 1972) et le patrimoine intangible (la Convention de l’UNESCO de 2003) sont des instruments bien distincts, de même que les réseaux d’experts soutenant cette protection. Mais dans le cas du fale de Samoa, sa protection relève assurément des deux problématiques, celles du patrimoine tangible et celle du patrimoine intangible. C’est d’ailleurs le cas pour de nombreux autres sites patrimoniaux majeurs dans le Pacifique. A cet égard, je salue les initiatives régionales originales qui se sont développées dans la région pour protéger cet héritage. Il s’agit notamment de l’action du Conseil des arts et de la culture du Pacifique et de celle du Bouclier bleu du Pacifique (Blue Shield Pasefika), ce dernier réunissant un grand nombre d’acteurs dans le domaine du patrimoine culturel tangible et intangible.
L’histoire du fale de Samoa n’est évidemment pas terminée. Comme l’a très justement souligné Pernille Askerud, il reste à voir comment ces manifestations extraordinaires de la créativité humaine évolueront au cours de prochaines décennies : comment seront préservés les témoignages bâtis existants et comment la connaissance autour de cet héritage sera diffusée parmi les jeunes générations. Des initiatives ont fort heureusement été prises pour perpétuer ce patrimoine, notamment par un séminaire de l’UNESCO en 2014. Plusieurs articles récents du « Journal of Samoan Studies » témoignent également de l’existence de bonnes pratiques d’enseignement en la matière.
Il me reste à remercier vivement les Editions La Loingtaine pour cette superbe contribution à la promotion de la diversité culturelle. Nul doute que cet ouvrage, unique dans son genre, contribuera de façon constructive à la transmission de ces connaissances et méritera, à ce titre et à bien d’autres, de trouver une place de choix dans les rayons et sur les tables de travail des instituts de recherche de la région où il devrait rapidement devenir la référence incontournable sur le fale de Samoa.