evidence: American Samoa is a territory of the United States. It consists of a group of islands in the Pacific Ocean. American Samoa’s closest neighbor is the country of Samoa, another group of islands. The capital of American Samoa is Pago Pago, on the island of Tutuila. The Samoan islands are located about 1,600 miles (2,600 kilometers) northeast of New Zealand and 2,200 miles (3,500 kilometers) southwest of the U.S. state of Hawaii. They are part of the region known as Oceania. There are seven islands in American Samoa. They are Tutuila, Tau, Olosega, Ofu, Aunuu, Swains Island, and Rose Island. No one lives on Rose Island. Two of the islands—Swains Island and Rose Island—are coral atolls. They were formed when volcanoes sank into the sea over thousands of years. Chains of coral developed around the volcanoes as they were sinking, and eventually only the coral and a small area of land were left. The other islands of the group were formed by volcanic activity. Those islands are very mountainous. The territory is in a part of the world known as the ring of fire. There are many volcanoes and earthquakes in the area.