Coat of arms of Samoa

Coat of arms of Samoa
ArmigerIndependent State of Samoa
Adopted1962
MottoFa'avae i le Atua Samoa
"God be the Foundation of Samoa"

The coat of arms of Samoa takes its inspiration from the United Nations, as New Zealand administered Western Samoa first as a League of Nations Mandate and then as a United Nations trusteeship until the country received its independence on 1 January 1962, as Western Samoa. Samoa was the first Polynesian nation to reestablish independence in the 20th century. The background is cross-hatched with a grid like the United Nations arms, most of the other elements are duplicated on the national flag.