Tag: Tongan
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Polynesians: Ancient Seafayers
Just as the movie Moana portrayed, Polynesians were ocean-going voyagers of the sea. They used double-hulled canoes, sometimes fifty feet long and powered by wind. On board, they carried precious cargo of seeds, cultivated plants, and domestic animals to create and support their island ways of life: coconut, breadfruit, bananas, taro, yams, arrowroot, and sugarcane. …
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Pepeha, Your Mountain, Your Identity
When do we develop an identity? Our identity starts right from the beginning. Our environment, our parents, our siblings, our cultural setting. But this process can be more difficult when you are adopted. It can be hard to grow up in a family where you do not look like your parents or siblings. Maoris greet…
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One of The Oldest Foods On The Earth
I enjoy researching unique things about life in Tonga, and the other day, I came across an article about seafood, limu in Tongan. Known as one of the oldest foods on the earth, and touted as a superfood, limu is becoming more popular. I purchased some through Amazon to add to shakes; I am trying…
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Tonga Volcano Eruption: Let’s Not Forget!
This week I was thinking about Tonga and the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcano which erupted almost one year ago on January 15, 2022. How can the people of Tonga be so resilient? Besides the ash, smoke and gases that were the highest ever reported, how does a country recover from that? Not to mention one…
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Niuafo’ou: Tin Can Island
In Tonga’s First King and Other Folk Tales, the last folktale in the book is about how the island of Niuafo’ou (many new coconuts) came to be. This island is unique because it is also called the Tin Can Island. Unlike other islands worldwide, it does not have a natural harbor or pier, so there…
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Where Did Tongans Come From?
Tonga emerged from the sea from a pair of volcanic chains from Australian and Pacific tectonic plates as some of these volcanoes rose above sea level. Some of these volcanoes below the surface provided a place where coral reefs would grow and later rise up forming limestone islands. The largest of these islands is Tongatapu.…