Tagaloa

According to Samoan mythic accounts, Tagaloa dwelt in space (the heavens) and is credited with creating nine heavens, the sky, the land, the seas, fresh water, trees, and people. In attested legends Tagaloa rolled stones from heaven that became islands (one stone becoming Savai'i and another Upolu); in Manu'a tradition Tagaloa sent a vine to earth that produced maggots which became human beings. Tagaloa is described as father of gods Lagi and is named as progenitor in genealogical narratives in which his children (for example, a son Moa and a daughter Lu) appear; one account records Lu's grandson fleeing to earth and calling it Samoa. These accounts are presented in the sources as traditional myths rather than uniform historical fact.

The available sources do not supply a systematic physical description of Tagaloa. The figure is consistently situated as a heavenly, sky‑dwelling creator (Tagaloa-Lagi, 'of the Heavens/Skies'), but no consistent corporeal details (size, color, or humanoid form) are attested in the provided material.

In the gathered traditions Tagaloa performs primordial creative acts: making the multiple heavens (nine heavens in some accounts), creating the sky, land, seas, fresh water, trees, and people. Specific mythic actions attributed to Tagaloa include rolling stones from heaven that became islands, sending a vine to earth that led to human origins in Manu'a, fathering gods and mortals (children named Moa and Lu are recorded), bringing a war god called Fe'e (octopus) to Manu'a, and in one account being identified as a sun god whose son Alo'alo married Sina. Tagaloa's role is chiefly that of supreme creator and progenitor within the Samoan divine genealogy.