To western tourists, called palagi en Somoa, the fa'afafine looked something rather exotic, perhaps a little incomprehensible. Why incomprehensible? It is difficult to understand, when we had been used to imagine that the homosexual is a typical product of a our civilization. The philosophical theories about the “happy savage” has been an obession since the XVIII Century. They have been telling us civilization has corrupted the esence of our human being. And savages has been spared of this corruption. That has been the main reason behind antropologists.
    The exception to this idea come to us from the Christian missionaries that had identified past times with the influence of Satan. So theories of the happy savage living happily in a sort of edenic garden came to us mainly from atheists philosophers.
    Anyway, perhaps they were all wrong for a reason or other, the natives never had been the happy savages of the philosphers, neither have they been more controled by Satan than the very missionaries that came to save the souls of natives.
    When a western tourist come to Somoa, he can be a little puzzled at the look of certain females that are working in a tourist office, or as waiter in a restaurant, or in some other places, because these women lokked a little like men.
    It is a little later, that someone tells him that these sort of persons are in fact "fa'afafine". If he ask about, they could hear that these singular persons were boys that had been raised as girls in their families. Everybody in their villages took this singularity as something natural. That is a sort of tradition in Polinesia. Parents had perhaps too many male children, and they choose a son to help the mother with domestic chores.
    Then, as these boys were doing the work of women, they become considered as women, and they usually are raised and clothed as girls. This is only an hypothesis, and is very difficult to found out the reason for this behaviour, as the s are uncomfortable talking about this issues with "popoas". This is a Polinesian term meaning western white people.
    The reason for this embarrassment comes from the work of Christian missionaries that have been working many decades to erradicate homosexuality and ancient rites and customs. Nevertheless this ancient tradition had not been exterminated.
    What could be the rational behind this old custom? We can only speculate. It is not weird that a first born son could have the role of "fa'afafine". This looked a little weird to me, in the asumption that a first born son was something special.   I mean that we, westerners, put a lot of illusion in our first born son. And as being a "fa'afafine" was not a prestigious role... Well, I mean in most of our societies females seem to have an lower status. It was later, that I found that sometimes, some very young females, could sometimes get impregnated. In general this ocurrence is not welcome, for very young females are not adviced to marry. It is assumed they have not maturity to carry on the burdens of a mother.
    These young mothers could be pressed to give out their babies to older relatives, or family friends. There is a great amount of adoptions among polisinesinas. About a 20% or so of children are given in adoption. There is a small posibility that this boy given in adoption can be raised a "fa'afafine".
    So, once you give a baby or any children in adoption you have not any control over their destiny. Perhaps, the mother want to keep the first son, and resist the demands of someone to give out his son. Well, the mother can accept the advice from her mother to made him a "fa'afafine" to help at home.
    Other utility of a fa'affine is, beside their work in female chores,they could also perform male works, and help the comunity in this condition of being at the same time male and female. If you see them this in a cinical way, they are sort of domestic and community slaves.
    What could be the reason for this custom? One can imagane has something to do with a mean to control the population.   Other idea that comes to my mind is a little more complex to explain.   Young people lack maturity to carry with the responsabilities of parenhood.   Then they are discurage to have sexual relations while they are too yung.   Well, they are too young to be parents, but not too young to be lustful.   Then, some young males are specially lustful and they are going to be to eager to experiment with young girls.
    Then, here it comes the role of the "fa'afafine". This role is that of a female, not only in regard to the home chores, but is used also as a female sustitute.   In this role, this boy or men can give a sexual relief to excited males. It is usually a felatio that is performed. Other forms of service are unknown in the Polinesian tradition.
    So there is a social interest that each village would have at least its "fa'afafine". When the official "fa'afafine" is getting old is not good for the sexual role.   So, there is some mechanism that produce a new one.
    We can imagine that in older times, when this role was not so embarrassing as is nowadays in each village could had been six or seven "fa'afafine" in service.
    But nowadays it is almost a social role in extinction.
    Well, actually, the excess population of the villages, are migrating toward the big cities in Polinesia, where they work in many jobs.   You can find many of these men working in the sex business, sex shows and night clubs.
    The memories of some older "fa'afafine" of their childhood in their villages, are of blissful happiness. They recalled their mother loved them, and reconized that they were not ordinary boys, but very sweet and special. People in the village did not harass them for being like they were, but were accepted and loved.
    We can also imagine, a different theory.   These boys were not raised to be that way.   Their special condition come out naturally.   All that happened was that parents, as well as the peers of a boy, they discovered the special bent of a boy to be raised in this role.  
    Anyway, it can be said, that some boys do not conform with the exacting physical works a young male boy has to perform.   Then, he is identified as a female-boy and he could be pushed into this role by his peers as well as adults.

   

Samoan boys brought up as girls

'When I was young, my parents looked at me and the way I am… and they think, Oh Hazy, she must be not a boy, but something else.   And then, they never accuse me.  They really accept me.  They understand what I am, in my body.  'Hazy Pau Talauati

   

Living alone in a tiny house just outside the Savai'i village of Alaolemativa, Hazy Pau Talauati is a Samoan man who dresses and lives as a woman. She is a fa'afafine.   Like most fa'afafine in Samoa - and there are a few in most villages - Hazy is an accepted member of the community, valued for the work she does.
    Samoa's social acceptance of fa'afafine has evolved from the tradition of raising some boys as girls.   These boys, were not necessarily homosexual, or noticeably effeminate, and they may never have felt like dressing as women.   They became transvestites because they were born into families that had plenty of boys and not enough girls.
    In families of all male children (or where the only daughter was too young to assist with the 'women's' work), parents would often choose one or more of their sons to help the mother.  Because these boys would perform tasks that were strictly the work of women they were raised as if they were female.  Although their true gender was widely known, they would usually be dressed as girls.
    As they grew older, their duties would not change.   They would continue performing 'women's' work, even if they eventually married (which would be to a woman).
    Modern fa'afafine differ in two fundamental ways from their traditional counterparts.  First, they are more likely to have chosen to live as women, and, secondly, they are more likely to be homosexual.   These days, young Samoan boys who appear effeminate, or enjoy dressing as girls, may be recognised as fa'afafine by their parents.   If they are, they will usually be neither encouraged nor discouraged to dress and behave as women. They will simply be allowed to follow the path they choose.
    If it becomes apparent that a boy wants to become a fa'afafine, he will be taught the duties and crafts of women. Coupling those skills with the strengths of Samoan men can make a fa'afafine an extremely valuable member of society.

    Hazy: 'I think there's a little bit difference between fa'afafine here in Samoa and overseas, because here the fa'afafine can help the mother [by] doing the same job… and they can do the men's job as well. I think that's why the fa'afafine here are so popular, because they are hard working people.'
    Along with their hard work, modern fa'afafine are known for their good works. Samoan fa'afafine, for example, run an annual transvestite beauty pageant, the proceeds of which are donated to charities which support the elderly and the disabled. For these sorts of contributions to the community, some fa'afafine have been awarded customary titles.
    Hazy: 'When they see me, everybody, from the west to the east, even the children… they yell out, "Hazy! Hazy!" They call my name. So I ask my friends, "If I go on the ballot for an MP, I'm sure that I'm going to win…"[LAUGHS]'

Leopoldo Perdomo