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TikToker goes vIral after sharing Samoan mythology

Kegisa Peata
reporters@samoanews.com

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — Meet Kegisa Peata, a 26-year-old Samoan woman living in Washington State. She has amassed over 470k followers on TikTok through sharing her culture and touching on Samoan stories that have been passed down through generations.

One of the legends Kegisa often touches on is that of the Teine Sā.

As Kegisa noted, the Teine Sā were often concerned with ensuring people were respecting the fa'asamoa. The stories of Teine Sā are often passed down by elders to young ones as a way of teaching fa’asamoa and warning them of consequences.

Strong, powerful women are a common concept in Samoan legends and folklore — they can be seen again in the story of Nafanua: the Samoan warrior who is well-known for her strength and wisdom. Kegisa also refers to Nafanua on TikTok, where she emphasizes the fact that Nafanua is a woman.

“Many people know of Nafanua’s great battle, but she also had a hand in delegating responsibilities to people and is said to have given Samoa the governing structure that is still in place today.”

Despite Kegisa living so far away from her motherland, the stories of the Teine Sā and Nafanua continue to influence her today, and she enjoys sharing them on her platform to educate others.

“Being a Samoan living in the diaspora, I am proud of my roots and stand strong in my cultural identity. I find myself constantly looking for ways to incorporate my culture into everything that I do, and that has always been my intention behind my traditional content. I want the world to see and know that our breed of people in the Pacific exist.”

Read more at BuzzFeed and visit her on TikTok.