Fiame Mata'afa Faumuina Mulinu'u II - Paramount Chief & Titles

Paramount Chief & Titles

Mulinu'u II (first name) held a number of important chief titles in Samoa. His highest title was Mata'afa which made him one of the four most important Paramount Chiefs in the country. The title Mata'afa is part of the Tama-a-Aiga ('Sons of the Families') a quartet of chief titles, which were of national Paramount rank at the time. The other three Tama-a-Aiga Paramount Chief titles are Malietoa, Tupua and Tuimaleali'ifano.

His other names Fiame and Faumuina are also individual chief titles. As one individual can hold a number of different chief titles in Samoa, the exact order of an individual's 'names' can sometimes change. For example, he is referred to as Mata'afa Faumuina Fiame Mulinu'u II in Democracy and custom in Sāmoa: an uneasy alliance by Asofou Soʻo. Individual chief titles (i.e. Mata'afa, Fiame, Faumuina) are designated by consensus of extended families and kinship ties under Samoa's traditional 'matai' system, and in relation to a particular village or political district. A 'matai' title is collectively 'owned' by families through blood ties and kinship. The bestowal of a chief title upon an individual is done by traditional ceremony and ritual, marking the support and approval of an entire extended family and kin group for that person to take on the responsibilities of a leader of their family. Only 'matai,' those with chief titles can become a Member of Parliament in Samoan politics. This still exists today.

The high ranking chief titles of Fiame Mata'afa Faumuina Mulinu'u II played an important part in his entrance into parliament on the cusp of Samoa's political independence where a European political system would exist alongside Samoa's traditional socio-political structures.

Apart from the paramount chief title Mata'afa, he was also a descendant from another high ranking Tama-a-Aiga title, Malietoa, adding weight to his selection as the country's first prime minister. Mata'afa Iosefo, a previous holder of the paramount chiefly title had played a key role in the rivalry for kingship of Samoa during the country's colonial era.

The word 'chief' in the Samoan language is 'matai' and chief names come first in Samoan naming conventions. Matai titles in Samoa can be bestowed upon women or men. The wives of the Tama-a-Aiga are referred to with the cultural honorific Masiofo.