KJ Apa has been made a Samoan Chief in his home village.
KJ Apa made a chief in his home village (C) KJ Apa/Instagram
The 25-year-old actor is New Zealand-born but is half Samoan on his father's side and has been honoured with the title of chief in the village of Moata’a and took to social media to promise that he will "serve" his family and village.
Alongside a photo of himself kneeling in the traditional ceremony known as a saofa'i, he wrote on Instagram: "O la’u fautuaga - o le a ou tautua i le tatou aiga ma le tatou nu’u. Fa’afetai i le Atua. My goal is to serve my family and my village (Moata’a) Thank you God."
According to reports, the 'Riverdale' star was told at the ceremony to "take on this step in accepting his Samoan heritage and culture as well as his new responsibilities."
Back in 2021, KJ - whose full name is Keneti James Fitzgerald Apa - explained that he was named after his father - who also holds a chief title - and that he did not feel "adequate" enough to receive a title himself because he "doubts" himself in everything he does.
He said: "KJ is short for Keneti James, which is a Samoan name. I'm named after my father. It's like Kennedy but Keneti. My dad is a chief. He holds a matai title, a chief title, of the village, that he’s from and I’m from, called Moata'a, in Samoa. And after his father passed, the title was handed down to him. I can't speak Samoa and I would think it’s a huge responsibility, I don’t really feel adequate, to be honest, but I doubt myself in almost everything that I do."
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