2019 traditional lunar calendars are now available

Honolulu, HAWAII — The Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council is pleased to announce the availability of the 2019 traditional lunar calendars for Hawai’i, American Samoa, Guam and the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands.  The calendars' aim is to raise awareness about traditional ecological knowledge and enhance community involvement in fishery management.

The 2019 Amerika Samoa Lunar Calendar recognizes the traditional fishing methods employed by the indigenous people of American Samoa and provides traditional fishing information for a different species each month, highlighting methods, gears, seasons and cultural significance.

The front cover is by American Samoa artist Duffy Hudson. It portrays the legend of Sina, a Samoan girl who was the most beautiful woman in all of the islands, and Tuna, a common freshwater eel of the South Pacific islands that inhabits many island streams. Young larval tuna spend their early life adrift in the sea and return to freshwater when adults. According to stories widespread across the Pacific, the King of Fiji, the Tui Fiti, heard about the beauty of Sina and decided to go there to win her for his wife. Using all his powers of Fijian magic Tui Fiti turned himself into a young tuna and swam with the ocean currents to Samoa. To read the full version of this well-known legend, visit the National Park Service website at www.nps.gov/npsa/learn/historyculture/sinatuna.htm.

The calendar reflects continued work between Management Council and the American Samoa community to create a calendar that recognizes the importance of island cultures and traditional fishing practices in managing fishery resources and to foster opportunities for their participation, which is one of the Council’s seven Guiding Principles.

The moon phases in this calendar are for Pago Pago harbor as calculated by the HM Nautical Almanac. The tide charts with moon rise and set times were provided by OceanFun Publishing, NZ.

Special acknowledgments to Brian Thompson for the Samoan language editing and to the National Park Service (NPS) and others who are noted in this calendar for their photo contributions.

Sources of information found in the calendar include Historic Fishing Methods in American Samoa by David Herdrich, MA, and Karen Armstrong, PhD, 2008 (American Samoa Historic Preservation Office); The Samoa Islands: Material Culture by Augustin Krämer, 1995; and Samoan Proverbs on Fishing.

For more information or to request a print version of a calendar or poster (available in limited numbers), please contact the Council at [email protected].

Click on the attachment below to download the American Samoa Lunar Calendar.