Mālō e lelei! Hello!
Fēfē hake? How are you?
Sai pē! Just fine!
Ko au. Polite response when someone calls your name.
Mālō e lava mai. Thanks for coming.
'īo, Mālō e tau mo eni. Response to mālō e lava mai.
Ko hai ho hingoa? What is your name?
Ko NAME au. I am NAME
Ko e hā e lea faka-Tonga ki he ? What is the Tongan word for?
'oku 'ikai te u ilo. I don't know.
Fanongo pē! Just listen!
'ōua e lea, fanongo pē! Don't speak, just listen!
Fanongo lelei! Listen carefully!
Lea māmālie! Speak slowly!
Ko ia! That's it! (that's right)
Fakamolemole! Forgive (me)!
Kātaki! Please, excuse (me)!
Kātaki fakamolemole! Please be patient! (empatic)
Tali mai! Answer (me)!
Toe 'ai! Repeat!
Tulou! Excuse me!(Tulou is appropriate when you
have just passed in front of someone or
reached over in front of someone.)
Hū mai! Come in!
Farewells
'ālu ā ē! Goodby! (to the person going)
Nofo ā ē! Goodby! (to the person staying)
Mou ō ā ē! Goodby! (to several persons going)
Mou nofo ā ē! Goodby! (to several persons staying)
Faka'au ā ē! Goodby! (polite form, singular)
Mou faka'au ā ē! Goodby!(polite form, plural)
Note: īn most farewells there is a rising intonation in the voice on the final ē.
Monday, July 27, 2009
Spelling, Sounds, Pronunciation
Tongan spelling is phonemic, it is spelled the way that it sounds.
Vowels
a as in father (only shorter) fala, mate, pato
ā a lengthened mālō, kākā, fakahā
e as in bet (or somewhere between bet and bait) fale, mele
ē e lengthened pehē, ko ē
i as in machine liku, piko, taki
ī i lengthened ī, kulī
o as in born (pronounced a little farther fono, pito
back in the throat)
ō o lengthened pō, kokō
u as in root (only shorter and without offglide) lotu, muka
ū u lengthened pūluhi, fufū
In Tongan all consonants are separated by a vowel, all words end in a vowel.
Vowels
a as in father (only shorter) fala, mate, pato
ā a lengthened mālō, kākā, fakahā
e as in bet (or somewhere between bet and bait) fale, mele
ē e lengthened pehē, ko ē
i as in machine liku, piko, taki
ī i lengthened ī, kulī
o as in born (pronounced a little farther fono, pito
back in the throat)
ō o lengthened pō, kokō
u as in root (only shorter and without offglide) lotu, muka
ū u lengthened pūluhi, fufū
In Tongan all consonants are separated by a vowel, all words end in a vowel.
Saturday, May 16, 2009
An Explanation of the Tongan Presence in Utah
I've found an excellent article which explains the reasons behind the presence of the Tongan's in Utah. I will post an excerpt bellow and a link. Basically they are here because their ancestors answered the call to "gather to Zion" as many of my own ancestors did.
The explanation of my husbands presence in Utah is the same and different from the reasons given in the article.
In 1995, during an early morning jog with my neighbor Senita, I learned that a group of her cousins were coming here soon from her island. Tonga at this time was still a vague idea to me.
She mentioned also that one of her cousins named Samuel after her father might be coming as well. At that moment I imagined him in Tonga, amongst the palm trees, in the lush vegetation and swimming in the ocean. The thought occurred to me, what would he think about me if I went over there to meet him, it turns out that he came to me.
Several months later I went up to the airport with them to pick up the cousins. A group of about six guys got into the back of their suburban, I could sense the essence of their foreignness. Their clothing hung loosely on there muscular frames, they wore sandles on their feet, and they had put gel in their hair which I could smell as I sat facing forward in the back seat.
On the way home from the airport, I listened to their thick Tongan speech. They made exclamations over things, one of which I noticed was when we passed a game of basketball being played.
At some point during the drive I felt tugs on my long blond hair, I turned around quickly and they all sat with innocent looks on their faces. I turned back around and could hear their nervous laughter and teasing tones in their voices.
I later learned that my husband was the one tugging at my hair, because he couldn't believe that my long blond hair was for real. :D
The explanation for their presance here is that they had come to work for their uncle, as concrete laborers.
This is what Sam has done ever since I have known him, he studied the people he worked for and has become very good at it.
He completed renovations on an airport down in Carbon County, Price, last year. However stubborness, the Tongan tendancy to trust word alone, a general inability to keep track of expenses, and the failure to get a contract (despite my repeated warnings) has led us into financial ruin.
With the down turn in the economy, there has been little call for concrete work. Trying to think of another natural interest of Sam's I thought of Personal Training as a career path and investigated that.
He is doing well in his classes despite the language barrier, and I hope that it will be a better choice of career for our family. There are many benefits that come along with working at the gym, besides for the gym pass. :D
He can eventually work for a sports team, or he can help train the police, or he can go into physical therapy, or he can go on for other training to perhaps become a police officer like he has always wanted to be.
There ya' go... a bit of personal history, as well as history of Tongans in Utah.
South Sea Islanders In Utah
Though Polynesian immigration to Utah is primarily a twentieth-century phenomenon that started after World War II with the arrival of a few Tongan and Samoan families, emigration from Polynesia to Utah actually began three-quarters of a century earlier. Mormon proselytizing in the Pacific started in Tahiti in 1844, three years before the first Mormon pioneers reached the Great Salt Lake Valley, and soon expanded to other Polynesian islands. Like their American and European counterparts, these converts from the Pacific islands wanted to join with other Mormons in building Zion. Often arriving with returning missionaries, they came a few at a time, beginning in about 1875. Marked cultural differences inhibited their integration with other Utah Mormons, prompting the LDS Church to purchase land to provide them with a specific gathering place. On 28 August 1889 a company of between fifty and seventy-five Polynesians, mostly Hawaiians, founded their own unique Mormon colony on the 1,200-acre Quincy Ranch located in hot and dry Skull Valley, twenty miles southeast of the Great Salt Lake. There they settled, naming their community Iosepa, meaning Joseph, after Joseph F. Smith, an early Mormon missionary and church leader in Hawaii, and later a president of the Mormon Church.
The townsite of Iosepa was surveyed, land grants were made to each family, and the colonists built homes, public facilities, and even their own aqueduct and irrigation system. Poplar and cottonwood lined the streets. Ponds were constructed where carp and trout were raised, and experiments were conducted with growing seaweed and other traditional products that were absent from this new desert environment. The residents raised livestock and farmed, and eventually cultivated nearly 1,000 acres. The population grew, supplemented by occasional immigrants from Polynesia. But the necessary hard work, exposure, and even a bout of leprosy resulted in a high mortality rate that kept the population at just over 200. In 1915 plans were announced to build a Mormon temple in Laie, Hawaii, and Mormon church leaders subsequently encouraged the Polynesians to return to their Pacific homelands.
Perhaps Utah's Polynesians could be better understood by classifying them in two general categories. One comprises those "more westernized" cultures--the Hawaiians, Maoris, and Tahitians--which historically experienced earlier and more intensive contact with European cultures. The other category includes those "less westernized" cultures, such as the Tongans and the Samoans, which experienced less and later intervention from the outside. In twentieth-century Utah, these historical differences have resulted in two very different experiences in terms of assimilation, acculturation, and the maintenance of cultural tradition.
The explanation of my husbands presence in Utah is the same and different from the reasons given in the article.
In 1995, during an early morning jog with my neighbor Senita, I learned that a group of her cousins were coming here soon from her island. Tonga at this time was still a vague idea to me.
She mentioned also that one of her cousins named Samuel after her father might be coming as well. At that moment I imagined him in Tonga, amongst the palm trees, in the lush vegetation and swimming in the ocean. The thought occurred to me, what would he think about me if I went over there to meet him, it turns out that he came to me.
Several months later I went up to the airport with them to pick up the cousins. A group of about six guys got into the back of their suburban, I could sense the essence of their foreignness. Their clothing hung loosely on there muscular frames, they wore sandles on their feet, and they had put gel in their hair which I could smell as I sat facing forward in the back seat.
On the way home from the airport, I listened to their thick Tongan speech. They made exclamations over things, one of which I noticed was when we passed a game of basketball being played.
At some point during the drive I felt tugs on my long blond hair, I turned around quickly and they all sat with innocent looks on their faces. I turned back around and could hear their nervous laughter and teasing tones in their voices.
I later learned that my husband was the one tugging at my hair, because he couldn't believe that my long blond hair was for real. :D
The explanation for their presance here is that they had come to work for their uncle, as concrete laborers.
This is what Sam has done ever since I have known him, he studied the people he worked for and has become very good at it.
He completed renovations on an airport down in Carbon County, Price, last year. However stubborness, the Tongan tendancy to trust word alone, a general inability to keep track of expenses, and the failure to get a contract (despite my repeated warnings) has led us into financial ruin.
With the down turn in the economy, there has been little call for concrete work. Trying to think of another natural interest of Sam's I thought of Personal Training as a career path and investigated that.
He is doing well in his classes despite the language barrier, and I hope that it will be a better choice of career for our family. There are many benefits that come along with working at the gym, besides for the gym pass. :D
He can eventually work for a sports team, or he can help train the police, or he can go into physical therapy, or he can go on for other training to perhaps become a police officer like he has always wanted to be.
There ya' go... a bit of personal history, as well as history of Tongans in Utah.
South Sea Islanders In Utah
Though Polynesian immigration to Utah is primarily a twentieth-century phenomenon that started after World War II with the arrival of a few Tongan and Samoan families, emigration from Polynesia to Utah actually began three-quarters of a century earlier. Mormon proselytizing in the Pacific started in Tahiti in 1844, three years before the first Mormon pioneers reached the Great Salt Lake Valley, and soon expanded to other Polynesian islands. Like their American and European counterparts, these converts from the Pacific islands wanted to join with other Mormons in building Zion. Often arriving with returning missionaries, they came a few at a time, beginning in about 1875. Marked cultural differences inhibited their integration with other Utah Mormons, prompting the LDS Church to purchase land to provide them with a specific gathering place. On 28 August 1889 a company of between fifty and seventy-five Polynesians, mostly Hawaiians, founded their own unique Mormon colony on the 1,200-acre Quincy Ranch located in hot and dry Skull Valley, twenty miles southeast of the Great Salt Lake. There they settled, naming their community Iosepa, meaning Joseph, after Joseph F. Smith, an early Mormon missionary and church leader in Hawaii, and later a president of the Mormon Church.
The townsite of Iosepa was surveyed, land grants were made to each family, and the colonists built homes, public facilities, and even their own aqueduct and irrigation system. Poplar and cottonwood lined the streets. Ponds were constructed where carp and trout were raised, and experiments were conducted with growing seaweed and other traditional products that were absent from this new desert environment. The residents raised livestock and farmed, and eventually cultivated nearly 1,000 acres. The population grew, supplemented by occasional immigrants from Polynesia. But the necessary hard work, exposure, and even a bout of leprosy resulted in a high mortality rate that kept the population at just over 200. In 1915 plans were announced to build a Mormon temple in Laie, Hawaii, and Mormon church leaders subsequently encouraged the Polynesians to return to their Pacific homelands.
Perhaps Utah's Polynesians could be better understood by classifying them in two general categories. One comprises those "more westernized" cultures--the Hawaiians, Maoris, and Tahitians--which historically experienced earlier and more intensive contact with European cultures. The other category includes those "less westernized" cultures, such as the Tongans and the Samoans, which experienced less and later intervention from the outside. In twentieth-century Utah, these historical differences have resulted in two very different experiences in terms of assimilation, acculturation, and the maintenance of cultural tradition.
Friday, May 15, 2009
Tongan Funeral
In September of 2007 a truly tragic thing happened to the Samani & Lavulavu family.
My husbands aunt Talite had six boy's and one girl. In 2007 her oldest son Etikeni and his wife Treshel were driving home from a family reunion on the notorious Highway 89, when a drunk driver in another truck going in the opposite direction crossed over the meridian into their lane. Their truck was incinerated, there was not much left of them after the crash. The pictures on the news were graphic.
This truly tragic event was to be my first experience with a Tongan funeral up close. I had heard about them, read about them, but the actual event was and is difficult to explain.
Here is as close of a description as I can get.
We immediately went over to Talite's eg. The Samani household. I am very close to her as she is one of the most generous and loving people that I know. She has helped me many times by watching my children and she is always interesting to talk to.
When we arrived at their house the first thing I noticed is that people had immediately found black clothing to wear (I too had put on some black). There were people milling about in their yard and on their front porch, and even more in their living room.
It seemed as though everyone there was able to weep profusely, but at the moment my tears were lost somewhere. When I walked in and saw Talite's face they started to flow and I hugged her. She held me tightly sobbing on my shoulder calling "thanks Annie, I love you Annie" through her tears, she held everyone in like manner.
We sat awkwardly around the living room, so many large bodies in so little space. I perched on the edge of the couch with Roxie until someone offered me their spot on the couch.
His Aunty Mepa kept repeating that he had just been to her house and left food on her table with a note.
After a while we realised that there was nothing at the moment to do, so we left them.
The next day I came back and found that they had cleared the living room of all of the couches and had cleaned the house from top to bottom. They had laid tapa cloth all over the floor and a few women were sitting around eating yams and chicken.
This was the beginning of the wake.
I learned that there would be someone there at all times, to receive visitors for the week, leading up to the funeral. There were men out cooking, I learned that the best food would be prepared later on, when more visitors would arrive. I could come back later.
I stopped by over the next couple of days, they had the same routine night and day. The woman sat in the house or made other preparations and the men cooked continuously, their efforts changing each day.
Then a sort of final wake was to occur the night before the funeral, so we all prepared by dressing in black for the occasion.
When we arrived at the house, there were so many cars that we had to park several blocks down. We got out and walked in the receding light and I watched the dark branches overhead as we passed the trees on the street.
Several groups of people were converging on their home and people, mostly men, were milling around in the yard.
They had set up a portable shade in one part of the yard with tapa mats covering the ground, their were more mats in the house.
Some people were eating, and they offered to get me some food as I found some of my sisters-in-law and sat down with our baby Roxie.
There was an air of expectation as we waited, it grew heavier as the time passed and nothing happened. Nothing but rearranging bodies and waiting.
I sat there patiently and tried to gather from little comments made in English and some of the Tongan that I know, what was going on. My sister in law Tresha didn't know either and the Tongans around me seemed distracted and anxious, not willing to explain. Sam was in the back cooking and the children were running around.
Finally something happened, a group of people showed up in several cars. They got out and I noticed that besides their black clothing they were also adorned in tapa mats, tied around the chest, the women had whale bone combs in their thick hair and gold flashed from their teeth when they smiled. (A peculiarity of many Tongans is that they fill their front canine teeth and other teeth with bits of gold, including my husband).
They opened up the backs of their cars and brought out copious amounts of blankets and mats.
The family group all stood on the sidewalk and up the front walk all holding the blankets and mats. The leader of the family called out to the house a traditional Tongan greeting/chant.
Those in the house answered with a chant, then the blanket holders chanted a reply and started to walk into the house. When they got to the front threshold of the door the leader called into the house and they were all permitted to enter.
I heard more chanting in the house. Then this group left carrying food and another showed up and the ceremony was repeated. Until several groups came and left in a similar manner.
In due course the occupants of the house came out to the portable shade and sat at the head of the group on the Tapa cloth. Everyone bowed their heads as Talavoa Samani, the head of the household, gave a very beautiful prayer.
Afterwards, it was very late. There were people there who were going to be there all night but with the kids there I couldn't stay, so I gathered up my kids and we left.
The next day we arrived at Talite's house first to offer our help, but I suppose that they had things under control because they sent us on up to the church. The funeral, it was held at a really large chapel. There weren't very many people when we arrived, we walked past the caskets. On the floor in a t-shape was some Tapa cloth, some of it in front of the caskets and some up the isle.
Their were pictures everywhere and a copious amount of flowers. Next to each casket were a few chairs, placed to honor family members, and to receive the mourners. These they did not end up using, since they have a rather large family, on both sides. So they had Etikeni's family on the far side in the front few rows, and Trechels family on the other side.
As time passed the chapel filled up quickly, so many people in fact that there were people out into the hallway. Members of each family spoke and then another traditional Tongan cry was called out by Etikeni's brother. It was a long mournful cry, filled with emotion. The congregation called their reply and then started to sing hymns in Tongan accappella.
When the Tongans sing accappella, it is always beautifully done, they spontaneously harmonize.
At this point the mourners were making their way towards the front to pay their last respects, I was holding back to wait for the bulk of the crowd to go past. I went to find my daughter Angela, and spied my sister in law Tresha. We stood off to the side observing the procession of mourners, never have I seen so many at a funeral. She was looking for her daughters as well. My other sister in law Volasinga (Vola) came over to us looking for her daughters.
I finally spied them. They were walking with the mourners, clasping their hands together and crying copious amounts of tears, sobbing really. This made Grandmother Lavulavu cry all the more and she stood up to join them.
I suppose that we had all been in a bit of shock, and their open show of emotion brought many people to weep. This was talked about afterwards with great appreciation, Tongans really like it if you openly cry like that.
I decided to get into line with Tresha and Vola. I was having trouble crying, I some times do. Eventually we made it to the Samani's and I did cry as I hugged each of them, especially Talite.
Afterwards I gathered up my children, except Angela who wanted to be with her cousins. We went out to the car to leave, and as we left we were handed food through the open window. They gave food to everyone who left in like manner.
This funeral was actually modified to accommodate Trechels family, and the fact that we were in America. So it wasn't quite as traditional as it would have been, had we have been in Tonga.
One of the differences is that the Tongans bury their dead in Tapa cloth and mound sand on top of their graves. The family visits often to take care of the grave.
This is a picture of Etikeni and Trechel
These Sam's family attending a funeral for his aunts little daughter in Tonga. The little girl with the red scarf like thing (I think it is a lava lava) is my sister in law Tresha's little girl, she was raised by Sam's aunt Molieta.
My husbands aunt Talite had six boy's and one girl. In 2007 her oldest son Etikeni and his wife Treshel were driving home from a family reunion on the notorious Highway 89, when a drunk driver in another truck going in the opposite direction crossed over the meridian into their lane. Their truck was incinerated, there was not much left of them after the crash. The pictures on the news were graphic.
This truly tragic event was to be my first experience with a Tongan funeral up close. I had heard about them, read about them, but the actual event was and is difficult to explain.
Here is as close of a description as I can get.
We immediately went over to Talite's eg. The Samani household. I am very close to her as she is one of the most generous and loving people that I know. She has helped me many times by watching my children and she is always interesting to talk to.
When we arrived at their house the first thing I noticed is that people had immediately found black clothing to wear (I too had put on some black). There were people milling about in their yard and on their front porch, and even more in their living room.
It seemed as though everyone there was able to weep profusely, but at the moment my tears were lost somewhere. When I walked in and saw Talite's face they started to flow and I hugged her. She held me tightly sobbing on my shoulder calling "thanks Annie, I love you Annie" through her tears, she held everyone in like manner.
We sat awkwardly around the living room, so many large bodies in so little space. I perched on the edge of the couch with Roxie until someone offered me their spot on the couch.
His Aunty Mepa kept repeating that he had just been to her house and left food on her table with a note.
After a while we realised that there was nothing at the moment to do, so we left them.
The next day I came back and found that they had cleared the living room of all of the couches and had cleaned the house from top to bottom. They had laid tapa cloth all over the floor and a few women were sitting around eating yams and chicken.
This was the beginning of the wake.
I learned that there would be someone there at all times, to receive visitors for the week, leading up to the funeral. There were men out cooking, I learned that the best food would be prepared later on, when more visitors would arrive. I could come back later.
I stopped by over the next couple of days, they had the same routine night and day. The woman sat in the house or made other preparations and the men cooked continuously, their efforts changing each day.
Then a sort of final wake was to occur the night before the funeral, so we all prepared by dressing in black for the occasion.
When we arrived at the house, there were so many cars that we had to park several blocks down. We got out and walked in the receding light and I watched the dark branches overhead as we passed the trees on the street.
Several groups of people were converging on their home and people, mostly men, were milling around in the yard.
They had set up a portable shade in one part of the yard with tapa mats covering the ground, their were more mats in the house.
Some people were eating, and they offered to get me some food as I found some of my sisters-in-law and sat down with our baby Roxie.
There was an air of expectation as we waited, it grew heavier as the time passed and nothing happened. Nothing but rearranging bodies and waiting.
I sat there patiently and tried to gather from little comments made in English and some of the Tongan that I know, what was going on. My sister in law Tresha didn't know either and the Tongans around me seemed distracted and anxious, not willing to explain. Sam was in the back cooking and the children were running around.
Finally something happened, a group of people showed up in several cars. They got out and I noticed that besides their black clothing they were also adorned in tapa mats, tied around the chest, the women had whale bone combs in their thick hair and gold flashed from their teeth when they smiled. (A peculiarity of many Tongans is that they fill their front canine teeth and other teeth with bits of gold, including my husband).
They opened up the backs of their cars and brought out copious amounts of blankets and mats.
The family group all stood on the sidewalk and up the front walk all holding the blankets and mats. The leader of the family called out to the house a traditional Tongan greeting/chant.
Those in the house answered with a chant, then the blanket holders chanted a reply and started to walk into the house. When they got to the front threshold of the door the leader called into the house and they were all permitted to enter.
I heard more chanting in the house. Then this group left carrying food and another showed up and the ceremony was repeated. Until several groups came and left in a similar manner.
In due course the occupants of the house came out to the portable shade and sat at the head of the group on the Tapa cloth. Everyone bowed their heads as Talavoa Samani, the head of the household, gave a very beautiful prayer.
Afterwards, it was very late. There were people there who were going to be there all night but with the kids there I couldn't stay, so I gathered up my kids and we left.
The next day we arrived at Talite's house first to offer our help, but I suppose that they had things under control because they sent us on up to the church. The funeral, it was held at a really large chapel. There weren't very many people when we arrived, we walked past the caskets. On the floor in a t-shape was some Tapa cloth, some of it in front of the caskets and some up the isle.
Their were pictures everywhere and a copious amount of flowers. Next to each casket were a few chairs, placed to honor family members, and to receive the mourners. These they did not end up using, since they have a rather large family, on both sides. So they had Etikeni's family on the far side in the front few rows, and Trechels family on the other side.
As time passed the chapel filled up quickly, so many people in fact that there were people out into the hallway. Members of each family spoke and then another traditional Tongan cry was called out by Etikeni's brother. It was a long mournful cry, filled with emotion. The congregation called their reply and then started to sing hymns in Tongan accappella.
When the Tongans sing accappella, it is always beautifully done, they spontaneously harmonize.
At this point the mourners were making their way towards the front to pay their last respects, I was holding back to wait for the bulk of the crowd to go past. I went to find my daughter Angela, and spied my sister in law Tresha. We stood off to the side observing the procession of mourners, never have I seen so many at a funeral. She was looking for her daughters as well. My other sister in law Volasinga (Vola) came over to us looking for her daughters.
I finally spied them. They were walking with the mourners, clasping their hands together and crying copious amounts of tears, sobbing really. This made Grandmother Lavulavu cry all the more and she stood up to join them.
I suppose that we had all been in a bit of shock, and their open show of emotion brought many people to weep. This was talked about afterwards with great appreciation, Tongans really like it if you openly cry like that.
I decided to get into line with Tresha and Vola. I was having trouble crying, I some times do. Eventually we made it to the Samani's and I did cry as I hugged each of them, especially Talite.
Afterwards I gathered up my children, except Angela who wanted to be with her cousins. We went out to the car to leave, and as we left we were handed food through the open window. They gave food to everyone who left in like manner.
This funeral was actually modified to accommodate Trechels family, and the fact that we were in America. So it wasn't quite as traditional as it would have been, had we have been in Tonga.
One of the differences is that the Tongans bury their dead in Tapa cloth and mound sand on top of their graves. The family visits often to take care of the grave.
This is a picture of Etikeni and Trechel
These Sam's family attending a funeral for his aunts little daughter in Tonga. The little girl with the red scarf like thing (I think it is a lava lava) is my sister in law Tresha's little girl, she was raised by Sam's aunt Molieta.
Saturday, May 9, 2009
A Tongan "Eating"
Tongans hold what they call "eating's" for special occasions, that is basically what they do, "eat."
I remember the first such event that I went to, with my neighbors brought me. I piled into their suburban along with Senita the oldest daughter, Sana the next oldest and Pine the youngest daughter. The boy's all had to sit on the floor in the back as they are generally segregated to the girls.
We went to someones apartment building and the "eating" was already in progress. I learned later that they usually say a good and long prayer before such events (sat through many in uncomfortable ignorance as to what they were saying and how long it would take to say it).
It had a community potluck type feeling to it as they had set up several long tables and everyone was milling around in line waiting for their turn. They embarrassed me by letting me go first (I thought it odd anyway), so I tried to navigate my way through the offerings.
There were large round yams, cut up into pieces, and another type of root (I later learned this was called Taro). There were little tin foil packages containing who knows what (these are called Lu' Pulu literally leaves and beef, the leaves are taro leaves or spinach in a pinch).
Next there was a dish of cut up fish mixed with coconut milk, little bits of cucumber, tomato, and spring onions. I took some of this and liked it. In fact I always get this (called Ota') when I go to these things, even though I later learned that it is a dish of raw fish soaked overnight in lemon juice before prepared.
At this particular "eating" they had prepared a dish of squid... I felt adventurous so I took a bit (even ate it).
Plus they had some clams or eh, muscles boiled and prepared with mayo, tomatoes, and spring onions.
They also had a dish that looked like translucent spaghetti mixed with vegetables and beef. I took a bit, but the translucent spaghetti freaked me out a bit, this dish is one of my children's favorites, it's called Chop Sui (made in different ways I suppose by different peoples).
When I sat down to eat my plate was so full of this foreign food and I picked at it a bit until I found that it was actually quite good!!
I remember the first such event that I went to, with my neighbors brought me. I piled into their suburban along with Senita the oldest daughter, Sana the next oldest and Pine the youngest daughter. The boy's all had to sit on the floor in the back as they are generally segregated to the girls.
We went to someones apartment building and the "eating" was already in progress. I learned later that they usually say a good and long prayer before such events (sat through many in uncomfortable ignorance as to what they were saying and how long it would take to say it).
It had a community potluck type feeling to it as they had set up several long tables and everyone was milling around in line waiting for their turn. They embarrassed me by letting me go first (I thought it odd anyway), so I tried to navigate my way through the offerings.
There were large round yams, cut up into pieces, and another type of root (I later learned this was called Taro). There were little tin foil packages containing who knows what (these are called Lu' Pulu literally leaves and beef, the leaves are taro leaves or spinach in a pinch).
Next there was a dish of cut up fish mixed with coconut milk, little bits of cucumber, tomato, and spring onions. I took some of this and liked it. In fact I always get this (called Ota') when I go to these things, even though I later learned that it is a dish of raw fish soaked overnight in lemon juice before prepared.
At this particular "eating" they had prepared a dish of squid... I felt adventurous so I took a bit (even ate it).
Plus they had some clams or eh, muscles boiled and prepared with mayo, tomatoes, and spring onions.
They also had a dish that looked like translucent spaghetti mixed with vegetables and beef. I took a bit, but the translucent spaghetti freaked me out a bit, this dish is one of my children's favorites, it's called Chop Sui (made in different ways I suppose by different peoples).
When I sat down to eat my plate was so full of this foreign food and I picked at it a bit until I found that it was actually quite good!!
Friday, May 8, 2009
Origination of Blog
I am a Palangi - "White Person" and have been married to a Tongan man named Sam, or if you might Samu (the Tongan version of his shortened name which is Samuela Mailangi... something I will explain) for 13 years (in June).
When we were married I tried to get him to tell me what his last name was, honestly he was torn... his mothers family had raised him, they were the Lavulavu's, his father had played no role in his life. So he told me his last name was Lavulavu, thus saying I became a Lavulavu. But that is not our last name now, now it is Vanisi. A story unto itself.
My first encounter with Tongans (though I didn't know it) was when his cousin Sifa moved into our school, I thought he was a black kid, he was popular. Then he moved out again only to come back during middle school. I didn't think too much of it until his family moved next door to mine. Then I thought, "Yes!! If they are my friends, I will be popular and protected from people that pick on me."
So one of the first questions that I asked them was "uh, are you from Hawaii or something?" Me with my grand knowledge of the world. To this they sort of snickered, (can't remember who it was I asked, probably the oldest daughter Senita), then she told me they were from Tonga. "Ah, where is that?" Well Tonga is near Figi, Australia and is part of the Galapagos group of Islands (I believe I got that part right, though I probably misspelled it).
They are an independent kingdom, never taken over by another power, unique as such, among the many islands kingdoms surrounding it. In fact a bit of news in this regards is a unique happening for my husbands family. His uncle Etuate Lavulavu has just been appointed by the king as one of the governors of the country. There are two, one from Vavau (my husbands island of origin) and from Tongatapu. This post is usually only given to those who are a part of the kings family, so it has been a major source of pride for the family.
Anyway, the story as I know it of Tongans and their ways is a very lengthy subject. Hard to deal with by my other blogs, so I thought I would create one just to talk about Tongans. Why not? They are an interesting people.
Now for a little Tongan proverb (of which I have a little collection, in a Tongan dictionary, of which the bulk of them are about yams).
Fakatu'amelie Ki He'ete Me'a 'Oku Tau He Fu'u Telie
Looking forward hopefully to my thing that is hanging from the telie tree.
Na'e 'i ai 'a e talanoa fuoloa ki hono tautau ha taunga 'i ha fu'u 'akau ma'a ha taha kehe. Kapau ko e me'akai lelei mo ifo nai'e tau leva 'i ha fu'u telie, ka kapau ko e me'akai olioli pe, na'e tau ia 'i ha fu'u tavahi. 'A ia na'a te 'amanaki lelei ki he me'akai he fu'u telie kau 'ikai ki he me'akai he fu'u tavahi. Ko e 'amanaki lelei ki ha taha pe ko ha me'a.
There was an old story about hanging food in a basket from a tree for someone else to get. If the food was good and tasty, it was hung from a telie tree, but if ordinary and not very appetizing, it was hung from the tavahi tree. So one looked forward to food from the telie tree, not from the tavahi. This saying is used generally of looking forward to something good from someone or something.
I will put up pictures that I get from Tonga, and Sam's relatives which are interesting. When I get the chance, as for now this is the start.
Malo 'aupito (Thank you very much).
Ofa' Lahi Atu (I love you all very much).
When we were married I tried to get him to tell me what his last name was, honestly he was torn... his mothers family had raised him, they were the Lavulavu's, his father had played no role in his life. So he told me his last name was Lavulavu, thus saying I became a Lavulavu. But that is not our last name now, now it is Vanisi. A story unto itself.
My first encounter with Tongans (though I didn't know it) was when his cousin Sifa moved into our school, I thought he was a black kid, he was popular. Then he moved out again only to come back during middle school. I didn't think too much of it until his family moved next door to mine. Then I thought, "Yes!! If they are my friends, I will be popular and protected from people that pick on me."
So one of the first questions that I asked them was "uh, are you from Hawaii or something?" Me with my grand knowledge of the world. To this they sort of snickered, (can't remember who it was I asked, probably the oldest daughter Senita), then she told me they were from Tonga. "Ah, where is that?" Well Tonga is near Figi, Australia and is part of the Galapagos group of Islands (I believe I got that part right, though I probably misspelled it).
They are an independent kingdom, never taken over by another power, unique as such, among the many islands kingdoms surrounding it. In fact a bit of news in this regards is a unique happening for my husbands family. His uncle Etuate Lavulavu has just been appointed by the king as one of the governors of the country. There are two, one from Vavau (my husbands island of origin) and from Tongatapu. This post is usually only given to those who are a part of the kings family, so it has been a major source of pride for the family.
Anyway, the story as I know it of Tongans and their ways is a very lengthy subject. Hard to deal with by my other blogs, so I thought I would create one just to talk about Tongans. Why not? They are an interesting people.
Now for a little Tongan proverb (of which I have a little collection, in a Tongan dictionary, of which the bulk of them are about yams).
Fakatu'amelie Ki He'ete Me'a 'Oku Tau He Fu'u Telie
Looking forward hopefully to my thing that is hanging from the telie tree.
Na'e 'i ai 'a e talanoa fuoloa ki hono tautau ha taunga 'i ha fu'u 'akau ma'a ha taha kehe. Kapau ko e me'akai lelei mo ifo nai'e tau leva 'i ha fu'u telie, ka kapau ko e me'akai olioli pe, na'e tau ia 'i ha fu'u tavahi. 'A ia na'a te 'amanaki lelei ki he me'akai he fu'u telie kau 'ikai ki he me'akai he fu'u tavahi. Ko e 'amanaki lelei ki ha taha pe ko ha me'a.
There was an old story about hanging food in a basket from a tree for someone else to get. If the food was good and tasty, it was hung from a telie tree, but if ordinary and not very appetizing, it was hung from the tavahi tree. So one looked forward to food from the telie tree, not from the tavahi. This saying is used generally of looking forward to something good from someone or something.
I will put up pictures that I get from Tonga, and Sam's relatives which are interesting. When I get the chance, as for now this is the start.
Malo 'aupito (Thank you very much).
Ofa' Lahi Atu (I love you all very much).
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)