A Grammar and Dictionary of the Samoan Language, with English and Samoan vocabulary
7. Prepositions
7. Prepositions
o and a, of. | i fafo, without; alu i fafo, go outside. |
mo and ma, for, on account of. | |
ma, with; sau ma ia, come with him. | i luga, above. |
i lalo, under. | |
ia (to proper names), to. | i tala atu, beyond; o loo i tala atu o le vai atu o le vai, it is beyond the, it is beyond the river. |
i, in, at, to.* | |
e, by. | |
mai, from. | i tala mai, on this side. |
i totonu, within. | i tua, behind. |
i loto, within; o loo i loto fale, he is within the house. | i luma, before. |
The last six of these take the plural form of the pronoun. In the case of the last two it serves to distinguish them from the noun; alu i oʻu tua, go behind me. Alu i loʻu tua would mean, to get up on my back.
* “A taeao, at to-morrow.,”–Codrington. It is also used to denote the instrument by which something is done, and answers to with; as, Na fasia o ia i le laʻau, He was beaten with a stick.