Pei o auma e le fiu i fafati

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(Jerome Grey version)
Pei o auma e le fiu i fafati
O’u nei mata e le fiu i va’ai
Aue le alofa ua tauaso i le maasiasi
Ua ou le tiu fa’amatala’oa
Talu le alofa ua atoatoa
Pele ea ne’i galo ita i sau fa’asoa
E tu manu ae lili’a
I le feagaiga ua osia
Ne’i nimo vave pei o se miti po’o se li’a
Lo’u alofa sa fa’alilo
Fa’anaunau atu ia oe
La’u lupe ua gata ai lo’u fa’amoemoe
Ua pei o se ie e folasia i malae
Le malosi e o lou mana’o
Ua vilivili fa’amanu ma i luga o puao
Se’ia tu o le fetuao
Ma tausani mai manu o le vaveao
Ne’i li’aina upu pe a ta vavamamao

Like waves that never tire of breaking
My eyes never tire of seeing (you)
Aue, my love is blinded by bashfulness (coyness)
I don’t care to explain anymore
Because my love is now satisfied (i.e. my thirst is now quenched)
My dear, may you not forget me when you choose.

Like a sheet (fine mat) displayed in the open field (i.e. for all to see)
The strength of my desire
is spinning like a bird of prey above the clouds
Until the morning star appears in the sky
and birds chirp/sing in the early morning
may you never forget (throw away) our words when we are apart

Like an uneasy bird (animal), I stand here
at the consummation of our love
in case this moment disappears like a dream or a vision
My love for you that was once hidden
is now out in the open
My dove, my hopes and dreams end with you

An intimate song for lovers, this one uses beautiful imagery to describe the moments after you’ve given your soul and body to someone else.

A beautifully mellow recent recording of this song confirms its original composer:

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Lilieni

12/01/2025 3:15 PM

hiya!

major fan

30/06/2009 10:59 AM

i love this song

liana

06/04/2010 7:06 AM

what is the english translation?

Eric

07/12/2012 8:51 AM

nice song

Paul

24/03/2013 11:15 PM

does anyone know a site that explains any history behind old Samoan songs like this one?

April M Manttari-See

28/01/2018 9:45 AM

I know it’s been a long time, but I used the translation app on my phone to translate the song. I doesn’t really make sense…

It’s like tired and tired
My eyes do not give up on the eyes
How sad is the blind to the shame
I am not alone
Love is perfect
Be careful not to forget about your stock

There are birds flying
In the covenant it is made
Get it sooner than a dream or a lizard
My love was hidden
Describe yourself
My chicken ends my hope

It is like a cloth that is presented in the field
The strength is your will
It rains and springs on the fog
Until morning
And thousands of birds of the morning
Reverse words when we are distracted

hamogeekgirl

13/06/2019 12:27 PM

Lol… I’ll post up full translations soon, but here’s a clue for you:

Auma = waves (like on the ocean)
fafati = how the waves break, you know.. when they crest with that white foam at the top?
fiu = tired of…
le = not (negation)

So… pei o auma e le fiu e fafati = like the waves that never get tired of breaking

ou nei mata e le fiu e va’ai = my eyes are never tired of looking (at you…? lol)

Here’s another clue: this song is very sexy, actually. 🙂

Joy

27/03/2020 3:46 PM

Talofa Letupu Matautia, very much appreciate it if you can share whom wrote Pei O Auma..it is sure a beautiful song with deep and meaningful lyrics. I feel I’m doing a disservice by not acknowledging the true composer. Many Thanks

Most of the lyrics on this site were submitted by fans of Samoan music, so the words might not be entirely correct… and we may not know who originally composed the song. Please help us to learn. We are currently working through each of our 400+ songs to make as many corrections as we can. Please share any knowledge you have about this song in a comment. Whatever we can verify, we will update in this post. Thank you!