Samoan environment forum proceedings of the National Environment Forum 2001

Housing in Samoa has undergone tremendous change in the last fifty years. While smaller and less permanent traditional Samoan houses, or fale, are still being widely used the big open round- or oval-shaped fale with thatched roofs have been largely replaced by open rectangular structures with corrugated iron roofs. Within the rural villages more and more families are building European-style dwellings with internal facilities such as kitchens and bathrooms.