Thankyoulord

Some Samoans have English names, some Samoans have Samoan names, others have....phrases for names. 

A student named Thankyoulord came to PiCED today. His first name is Thankyoulord! How crazy is that?! I think he has become number 1 on my list of unique names. A very close win over Super Bowl Dallas Mac Jr Mac (who Thanh and Kate taught last year). 

In Samoa names are not as common as in the States. For example there isn’t a pool of accepted names that people choose from: Sarah, Ashley, Jessica, Michael, Christopher. Instead people draw their naming inspiration from all over the place, and, thus, it is not as common for 2 people to have the same name. Last year I only had 1 set of boys with the same name (Alfred). I’ve included some names I’ve run across in the past year...

Religious-theme-named: Blessing, Rosary, Missionary, Easter, Miracle.

Unusual Names:  Arbor Day, Donation, Queen Mary, Super Bowl Dallas Mac Jr Mac

Words as Samoan First Names: Fa’afetai (“Thank you”), Talofa (“Hello”), Nofoa (“Chair”), Fale (“House”)

These are some Samoan names just for reference: Leolemau, Pikasone, Faleupolu, Asalemo, Tulilli, Tafatafa, Logi, Moenu, Ioasa, Feaig’aiga.