Sandra King, Samoan Ceremonial Taupou

Music and dance is an integral part of who we are as a people. We live our culture day in and day out. We are born into music, we are born into dance, it's a part of who we are. And when there's a celebration, you can be sure that Samoans will sing and they will dance. You can put a hundred different Samoans together and you can ask them to sing one song and they would all be in harmony.

Most people were looking to me to be a practicing attorney. But that wasn't where my heart was.

The role of the taupou as ceremonial maiden is very traditional. Usually young chaste women are selected, and it's a daughter of the high chief. Her key role that is when she dances the taualunga in the finale of any celebration in Samoan culture.

The taualunga of a taupou is an elegant dance that portrays the beauty and elegance and the dignity of the Samoan culture. So her movements are very gentle and refined. And not jumping all over the place and bouncing all over the place like the men and the women who are around the taupou. Traditionally, they're supposed to be like the ghosts or the or the spirits that are supposed to try and distract the taupou from dancing. And they do that by being riff-raff. You know, dancing wildly and trying to distract the taupou from carrying out the dignified movements of the taualunga.

The tuwinna headdress has three parts: A shell headband, a human hair headcover, and three sticks that symbolize the importance of the taupou.

It is said that when a taupou attends a celebration or a traditional event in the Samoan culture, the event itself has become elevated because she's a part of the celebration. So there's a lot of pride bestowed upon a family with a sitting taupou.

When I was in college, people would constantly ask me where am I from, and I always used to say "I'm from Samoa." I recently returned home to American Samoa after spending ten years in Washington, D.C. and rather than working for the local government, or setting up a law office because I had received my juris doctorate from the George Washington University Law School, I was looking for a career. Most people were looking to me to be a practicing attorney. But that wasn't where my heart was. I decided to do something with children and that's how PICED ... the Pacific Island Center for Educational Development was founded.