SAMOAN MINOANS FROM ANCIENT CRETE: The Origin of Polynesia

SAMOAN MINOANS FROM ANCIENT CRETE: The Origin
of Polynesia

Hypothesis by: Obed
Unasa
2011

“Imagination is more
important than Knowledge.” Albert
Einstein

_____________________________________________________________________

In
presenting these findings it will be important to remember
that these themes and ideas are only introductory. Other
comparative studies based on my hypothesis will appear in a
final and complete compilation of theories and ideas in a
new book called, Samoan Minoans from Ancient Crete,
to be produced in the near future.

One of history’s
great mysteries that glitter in the realm of the unknown,
just beyond the reach of scientific proof, is the origin of
Polynesia. To this day scholars, historians, archeologists
still speculate as to when and how the first people of
Polynesia came to establish there new found homeland in the
Pacific Ocean.

My hypothesis simply draws on the
popular notion that Samoa is the Cradle of Polynesia. Rev.
John B Stair coined the phrase in his book Old
Samoa (one of the earliest accounts of Samoan
history written in 1843). ”Samoa is the fountain head
and Cradle of Polynesia.”

To construct a theory
around the origin of Polynesia we must examine first the
cultural and ancient oral traditions of Samoa itself. The
undertaking is a difficult one, as it contradicts the
traditional view, which is that the Samoan people did not
migrate from any other island or motherland. Samoan
traditions hold the view that Tagaloa-alagi created the
world and the Samoan people out of the earth, hence their
name Samoa. One traditional view states that anything born
out of the ‘moa’ or centre of the earth was
‘sacred’ to ‘moa’ (Samoa).

I
believe that a migration narrative can be established for
the Samoan people as the first and true descendants of
Polynesia. The first Polynesians were made up of the ancient
people of Crete, known to the modern world as the Minoans,
and the people from the Aegean Sea, notably the people from
the island of Samos.

This view is founded on the
theological and biblical account of creation, and the
parallels within the Samoan culture and its ancient
traditions, which are identical to those of the ancient
Minoan civilization. To support this theory, I will present
ideas around circumnavigation methods used by the ancient
Minoans, to reach the Pacific region. Above all, we cannot
understand the origins of Samoa without an in-depth
knowledge of Samoa’s oral traditions and its proverbial
statements, which are the “record keepers” of an older
tradition and ancient world. An understanding of these older
traditions and systems, was reserved only for those
belonging to the ancient kings of Samoa and their heirs.

For the Samoan people it is common knowledge that in
ancient Samoa, there was a separate language known as the
Kingly language (or Gagaga fa’atupu). Samoans today
belonging to a much older generation still speak the
language, and although much of its language is used in the
general setting through oratory speeches (or in a Matai’s
lauga), only a very small percentage of Samoans know of its
true meanings and origins.

Let us consider
first of all the phrase; Samoa is founded by God, E
faavae e le Atua Samoa. This is Samoa’s
national motto. If we place this within the context of
Samoa’s Christian belief, we then arrive at the notion
that the Christian God is paramount, and therefore the
biblical traditions are fundamentally significant within the
Samoan culture (Faa-Samoa).

To unravel the mysteries
around the origins of Samoa (and Polynesia), we must revisit
the classic story of Noah and the flood, as described in the
book of Genesis 7: 1-24.
What we want to examine here is
the aftermath of the flood. When the Ark finally comes to
rest on Mt Arafat (part of present day Turkey), there is, if
you like, the dawning of a new world. From Genesis 6:9 we
are also told about Noah’s three sons, Shem, Ham and
Japheth.

This story can also be found in other western and
eastern cultures where the story of Noah or variations of
this particular event is part of their traditions. Greek,
Indian and Chinese cultures are examples here. The origin of
the first Polynesians begins here with Noah’s sons.

Of
the three sons, Ham’s descendants can be traced to the
tropical areas of Africa, India, the Mediterranean and the
Pacific. According to the Table of Nations by Tim
Osterholm, the descendants of Ham (Ham which means dark
coloured or ‘hot’) include the Egyptian, Ethiopia,
Canaanites, Phoenicians and Hittites. His descendants appear
to be the first to fill the earth, as they were the first
settlers of Africa, Asia, Australia, the South Pacific and
the Americas.

The Mediterranean Sea and the location of
Crete, are of great importance thus forming the centerpiece
of my hypothesis. Crete is the center island of this
particular region, the isolation of the island Crete is also
crucial when comparing this to the Pacific Islands and in
this case, Samoa’s central location geographically, from
the other surrounding island groups in the Pacific.

Also
as a point of reference, the only other area in the world
where the scattering of other smaller islands is within the
area of the Aegean Sea. This unique formation is identical
to the Pacific Island formation in the Pacific Ocean, only
on a smaller scale.

Again this is a systematic
calculation by the Minoans for the selection of the Islands
of Samoa as a settlement place of the first Polynesians.
Centralization is a theme that runs profusely in ancient
Minoan civilization, especially with its trading and
commerce activities. This model has long been adopted in the
modern world of today, such as centralized governments in
New Zealand or in the U.S.

Samoa was chosen for its
central location within the Pacific realm surrounded by the
main island groups of Tonga, Fiji, and Tahiti. The
relationship between these island groups is well documented
through their shared histories and oral traditions.
One
of the important features of my research deals with the
naming process for Samoa in relation to the Island name of
Samos. While the name Minoan is from a more recent
tradition, the name Samos can be traced to an ancient period
in history. The names given to other places in Samos bear a
close resemblance to the place names given to Samoa and
other Polynesian islands. For instance, Avlakia or Aulakia
(Samos) is similar to the name Aitutaki, which is part of
the Cook Islands. Also the Samiopoula Island (Samos), bares
similarity to the name Upolu, a place both in Samoa and
Hawaii. Finally, the names Samos and Samoa are
very similar.

The ancient Samoan proverb, E
tala tau Toga ae tala tofia Samoa, is applicable to this
analysis. The proverb states, The stories of Tonga are
about war while the stories of Samoa are about a chosen
people, with special appointments or blessings and
bestowments. The first settlers of Polynesia chose the
Samoan islands as their settlement place.

The second point to note, deals with a reference to
‘The Sea People’, as discussed by Sanfold Holst in
Sea People and the Phoenicians. Here we are reminded
by Ham’s descendants the Phoenicians, that the Sea People
were from the Aegean Sea. They were great navigators and
masters of the sea. Ham’s descendants were characterised
by interest and abilities in agriculture, trading and
commerce.

The Minoans were seafarers and skilled traders
who established the first trade routes in this region, and
often traded with Egypt and other countries during this
period.
History also states that Samoa was referred to as
the ‘Navigators Islands’ by French circumnavigator
Bourgainville in 1768. In ancient Samoan traditions the
belief was and still is, O Samoa o tagata
folau. Samoans are navigators. The term folau
means ‘to sail, or travel.’ The word navigator means
Tautai, Tau means reach or fight and
tai means waves, sea or ocean.

This proverb is the
key to understanding the origin of Samoa as the first people
of Polynesia. It alludes to a people who travelled from a
distant place in search of new land. In other words, the
Minoans were sea people and great navigators.

The question
then is, why did the ancient people of Crete, the Minoans,
leave their original homeland, and how did they navigate
through the vast oceans and into the pacific
region?

Minoans were highly skilled and advanced
technologically. Their isolation from the mainland allowed
them to construct a new system of government and culture
that is unmatched even by today’s modern standards. They
created the ideals of a utopian society and lived
accordingly by these principles. A popular view today held
by modern scholars, is that the Minoans are the same people
who established the city of Atlantis.

The Minoans
were also the first to establish the trade routes, which
enabled them to trade across this region; they were a sea
power and depended on their naval ships for their
livelihood. They also established colonies at Thera, Rodos,
Melos and Kithira. Frescoes found in these places, point to
the political and social dominance of the Minoan culture,
which included the region of the Aegean Sea and other
surrounding islands.

Minoan civilization, would flourish
for hundreds of years, it would also give rise to the Greek
world a generation later. The turning point would arrive
around 1450 B.C. when the island of Thera within the Aegean
Sea, erupted which decimated this region, crippling the
Minoan civilization. By the time the Minoans rebuilt their
cities and temples, Crete was under Mycenaean rule.
What
happened to the Minoans after this time is shrouded in
mystery. The most remarkable of occurrence around this time,
as indicated by ancient historians, anthropologists and
archeologists, is the fact that on the other side of the
world, the settlement of Polynesia takes place around the
same time of the Thera eruption.

If we place the
settlement of Polynesia at about 1470 B.C., then there was a
20-year interim period for the Minoans to find a new
settlement place after the eruption at Thera. The motive to
leave their homeland of Crete was simply to avoid future
natural disasters, and to rebuild their communities outside
the Mediterranean Sea. What takes place next was the long
search for new islands similar to the natural environment
offered by Crete and the Aegean Sea; their route would take
them to the Indo-Pacific region and into the ‘gateway’
of Polynesia.
This route is commonly known as the Trade
winds or circumnavigation route used by the early European
explorers, and also by today’s modern travellers.

A
typical sailing circumnavigation of the world by the trade
winds and the Suez and Panama Canal, is an important feature
in modern travelling activity. Although the Suez and Panama
Canal was only completed in 1869, the passage through the
Red Sea was still used in ancient times. This is a route
followed by many cruising sailors going in the western
direction; the use of trade winds make it a relatively easy
sail, through a number of zones of calm or light
winds.

The Trade winds (trade in old English meant
path or track) are the prevailing patterns of easterly
surface winds found in the tropics, within the lower portion
of the earth’s equator. (Glossary of Meteorology (2000)
“Trade winds.” American Metrological Society
2008).
Historically, the trade winds have been used by
captains of sailing ships to cross the world’s oceans for
centuries, and enabled European empires to expand into the
Americas and trade across the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.
Using circumnavigation which covers at least a great circle,
and in particular one which passes through at least one pair
of points ANTIPODAL to each other, the ancient Minoans who
were masters of the sea, would have sailed across to Egypt,
built their ships along the Red Sea, and then headed down
the Red Sea and into the Indo-Pacific region.

Once in open
sea they would have entered the first antipodal points, the
end of Yemen and Somalia. The second points are Maldives
Island and Sri Lanka. The third points are the guiding
shorelines of Indonesia and the points between the tips of
Australia and Papua New Guinea. The forth points they would
have entered in my view, is the ‘gateway’ to the Pacific
Ocean; these points are the two Island groups of Solomon
Island, and Vanuatu. (atu / alu in Samoan
means go to or all of). The final antipodal
points are the Islands of Tuvalu and Fiji.
When you join these points on a map and draw a line between
these, you will discover that the dominant island group in
direct line of this circumnavigation route following the
trade winds, is the Islands of Samoa. Notice the geographic
position of Tonga to the south and outside the
circumnavigation route. This simply rules out Tonga, as the
first point of contact as a settlement destination for the
first Polynesians as supported by other commentators.

With the settlement of Samoa, the Minoans then began a
process of establishing a whole new culture called Polynesia
(after the Greek word Poly = many and nesos =
islands). The Island of Manu’a in Samoa based on the
ancient traditions of Polynesia, is considered to be the
first settlement place of Polynesia. After analysing new
information, the actual site and region where the first
Minoans settled before the dispersion to other parts of
Samoa, may be established, and will be discussed at a later
stage. Over time the Samoan Minoans would formulate a new
language and oral tradition, and also a political system
(later developing into the Samoan Matai system) based around
the ideals of Monarchism, identical to those of Crete. The
Minoans, the masters of the sea, would turn the islands of
Samoa into the center point for navigational exploration
into the wider Pacific Ocean. Samoa would become the hub for
trading purposes, and through this activity, they would
spread their new culture right across the Pacific region
including the distant islands of Hawaii. They also reached
the American continent but returned to its preferred
isolated center of Samoa. These were natural traits from a
system already grounded in Crete and the Aegean Sea. The
Minoans had simply duplicated the Minoan civilization in
their chosen place of settlement, which was Samoa.

From
this comparative study, the features which have a remarkably
striking resemblance, are found in the religious
(spirituality and demigod beliefs), the social, and creative
art forms for both the Samoan, and Minoan cultures. These
art forms and social activities were a key factor for the
well being of its people in ancient times and also in
today’s postmodern world.

After examining numerous
ancient Minoan pottery, and frescoes along side the patterns
of traditional Samoan tattooing (Tatau), and the Siapo (or
tapa cloths), the similarity in design motifs and imagery
are incredibly identical in form and style. In an interview
with world renowned Samoan Tattooist the late Su’a Suluape
Paulo II in March 1999, Paulo addressing the question on
Polynesian origins stated, “Eventually through the
tattooing, I am going to write something, because all these
motifs, the designs that are very similar in the Polynesian
islands, are going to connect somewhere.”

I have
presented these ideas and themes, as a way of looking beyond
scientific proof, and explored the possible origins more
from a cultural perspective, considering ancient traditions
of Samoa. Numerous theories on the origins of Polynesia have
been expressed with little attention to the traditions of
the indigenous people of the land. Only through this passage
can we come to understand the complex nature of any known
civilization and its origins. The Egyptians have its
mysterious hieroglyphics, the Incas its many inscriptions,
Asia the Confucius philosophy, and in Europe its sacred
temples. Samoa and the rest of Polynesia share a common bond
written in its oral traditions, and proverbial statements.
One thing is clear, is that they each share the same origin
story of a known race; calling themselves O Samoa o
tagata folau, people of the sea, from the motherland
known as Samoa.
There was once a unique civilization,
which flourished in the heart of the Pacific for hundreds of
years, before the rivalry and conflict, before the
intermarriage across bloodlines, especially between the
Melanesians of Tonga and Fiji, with pure Polynesian Samoans.
Despite all these changes in Pacific history, there are
still pure Polynesians living among us in the motherland of
Samoa. When we examine our own ancestral lineage we will
come to recognise them as pure Polynesians, Samoan Minoans
from ancient Crete.

*************

Obed Unasa is a Samoan historical
researcher.

Article source: http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO1107/S00040/samoan-minoans-from-ancient-crete-the-origin-of-polynesia.htm

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