Pacific Studies Journal
Abstract
Most studies of Samoan culture and language published since 1900 rely on Augustin Krämer’s seminal ethnography Die Samoa-Inseln. It is unusual for a scholarly work to become so accepted and beloved by an indigenous people, but Samoans hand down copies of Die Samoa-Inseln from generation to generation. They particularly prize the extensive Samoan language texts that appear side by side with their German translations. However, an analysis of Krämer’s personal diaries reveals that his grasp of the Samoan language was at best rudimentary. I suggest that the German translation instead reflect the efforts of highly sophisticated Samoan informants who had a complete grasp of the chiefly rhetoric of Samoa as well as a strong working knowledge of the German language.
Recommended Citation
Cox, Mary Elisabeth
(2009)
"INDIGENOUS INFORMANTS OR SAMOAN SAVANTS? GERMAN TRANSLATIONS OF SAMOAN TEXTS IN DIE SAMOA-INSELN,"
Pacific Studies Journal: Vol. 32:
No.
1, Article 2.
Available at:
https://digitalcollections.byuh.edu/pacific-studies-journal/vol32/iss1/2
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