What is the largest island in the Samoan Islands chain?

The largest island in the Samoan Islands chain is Savaiʻi.

Savaiʻi lies at the western end of the archipelago and is part of the independent country of Samoa. It covers roughly 1,700 square kilometres, making it larger than neighboring Upolu, although Upolu is more populous and contains the capital, Apia. The island’s highest point is Mount Silisili, rising to 1,858 metres.

Savaiʻi is a massive shield volcano with more than 100 volcanic craters. Its most recent major eruptions occurred from Mount Matavanu between 1905 and 1911, producing lava fields on the north coast. Much of the island’s interior is covered by the Central Savaiʻi Rainforest, one of Polynesia’s largest continuous rainforests.

A common mix-up is Tutuila, which is the largest island in American Samoa, not in the entire Samoan Islands chain. Savaiʻi is also known traditionally as Salafai, a name still used in Samoan formal oratory.