American Samoa

American Samoa Amerika Sāmoa
Unincorporated and unorganized territory
Flag Seal
Motto:  "Sāmoa, Muamua Le Atua" (Samoan) (English: "Samoa, Let God Be First")
Anthem: "Amerika Samoa"
Location of American Samoa (circled in red)
Sovereign state	United States
Partition of Samoa	December 2, 1899
Ratification Act	February 20, 1929
Capital	Pago Pago[a]
Government seat	Fagatogo[a]
Largest village	Tāfuna
Official languages	English Samoan
Ethnic groups	88.9% Samoan 2.9% Tongan 2.7% Multiracial 2.2% Filipino 2.2% other 1.2% White
Religion	98.3% Christian 1.7% other
Demonym(s)	American (official) American Samoan (colloquial)
Government	Devolved presidential constitutional dependency
• Governor	Lemanu Peleti Mauga (D)
• Lt. Governor	Salo Ale (D)
Legislature	Fono
• Upper house	Senate
• Lower house	House of Representatives
Area
• Total	77 sq mi (200 km2)
Highest elevation	3,170 ft (970 m)
Population
• 2020 estimate	55,212 (208th)
• 2010 census	55,519
• Density	670.8/sq mi (259.0/km2)
GDP (PPP)	2016 estimate
• Total	$658 million[8]
• Per capita	$11,200[8][9]
Currency	United States dollar (US$) (USD)
Time zone	UTC−11:00 (SST)
Date format	mm/dd/yyyy
Driving side	right
Calling code	+1-684
USPS abbreviation	AS
ISO 3166 code	AS US-AS
Internet TLD	.as

American Samoa /səˈmoʊə/ (listen) (locally /ˈsɑːmoʊə/; Samoan: Amerika Sāmoa, [aˈmɛɾika ˈsaːmʊa]; also Amelika Sāmoa or Sāmoa Amelika) is a territory of the United States. It is part of the Samoan Islands in the southern Pacific Ocean.

In 1899, Germany and the U.S. divided the Samoan group of islands. The U.S. got the smaller group of islands on the east side. These islands had a good harbor near the capital city, Pago Pago. The western islands were run by Germany and then by New Zealand and are now the independent country Samoa.

Officially, American Samoa is an "unorganized" territory. This means that the U.S. Congress has not passed an Organic Act. But the people who live in American Samoa rule themselves. Their constitution became effective on July 1, 1967.

The capital of American Samoa is Pago Pago, but the seat of government is Fagatogo.

Wikinews has related news:

• US Federal judge rules American Samoans are citizens, then delays implementation pending appeal

1. ↑ Revised Constitution of American Samoa Archived 2021-01-13 at the Wayback Machine, American Samoa Bar Association.
2. ↑ 3.0207 Divisions and sessions—Composition, Annotated Code of American Samoa, American Samoa Bar Association.
3. ↑ 3.0303 Sessions-Petit jury, Annotated Code of American Samoa, American Samoa Bar Association.
4. ↑ American Samoa Observatory, Trip to Tula, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
5. ↑ American Samoa Representative and Liaison Offices, U.S. Department of the Interior.
6. ↑ Tutuila Island Map, National Park Service.
7. ↑ "Districts of American Samoa". Statoids. Retrieved January 11, 2021.
8. ↑ ^{8.0 8.1 8.2} "American Samoa". The World Factbook. CIA. Archived from the original on October 21, 2013. Retrieved August 30, 2019.
9. ↑ "GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT FOR AMERICAN SAMOA INCREASES FOR THE SECOND YEAR IN A ROW" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on May 13, 2017. Retrieved July 14, 2017.