Media outlets in the country and abroad that use the Samoan language for announcements, advertisements and news bulletins have been cautioned about their choice of words.

The appeal to the media came from the National University of Samoa's Centre for Samoan Studies Director, Ta’iao Dr. Matavai Tautunu who expressed concern that the media's wrong use of Samoan words or phrases will only misinform young speakers of the language. 

He made the appeal during his presentation at the Cultural Center in Malifa last week as part of the national commemorations of the Samoan Language Week.

According to the N.U.S. academic, Samoans are easily offended when it comes to their culture and language, especially when they are used inappropriately or incorrectly. He said that while he values the role of the media in keeping the nation informed and promoting business and services, he urged media practitioners to "mind their language" and think about their choice of Samoan words. 

“Like anything in life, there are always loopholes. I take my hat off to the work of the media in Samoa, keeping the country informed and updated with good and not-so-good news," said Ta’iao. “Business advertisements are important to advertise products and goods and the costs for the customers or public. 

"Hence it is important to make sure that we use the right words and appropriate application of Samoan words. I was watching TV one night, and there was an ad from one of the businesses for White Sunday. One business had a special that if you buy one pair of shoes, you will get another one for free.”

However, the N.U.S. academic cautioned that one word can have multiple means, and as an example used the word “fua” which can be translated to mean “free, fruits, scale”. He said it was important for everyone to be careful when using words in a different context that can also mean something else.

“The concern is that children might pick up on the words incorrectly used in advertisements. Secondly, the language used in public notices. They are very important as they keep the country informed and updated on some of the very important announcements from the different government ministries. 

“However, there is a problem with the choice of words used. One of the main problems in public notices are pronunciation and correct spelling of matai titles. When it comes to names and titles, Samoans get and should be very careful as people may take offence if not pronounced correctly. Matai and family names are considered sacred.”