Tongan Portfolio: December 2010

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

Pictures of Port of Refuge

This is one of my favorite pictures of Mo'unga Tulou

Port of Refuge, Neiafu Vava'u

Tuesday, December 7, 2010

Tide Levels

Mofisi--the beginning of the turning of the tide as it comes in.

Ufiafua--when the rocks at the edge of the reef disappear

Liku-- the area of the ocean between the beach

Funohaki-- when the incoming tide covers half of the sand on the beach

Hu’a--The incoming tide when it gets deep.

Tau--tide is full and is at its highest

Taumatala-- When the tide turns and it begins to recede from the beach.

matuku--the tide is going out, and the sand is left further up the beach dry

Fonohifo--The tide has gone out more than halfway on the sandy beach

Tu’ungakiu--The big boulders at the edge of the reef are exposed, and the birds can stop and rest on them

Mamaha--The tide is at its lowest leaving everything high and dry.

Taumalie--A flood--the tide goes to the highest point on the beach that it can reach.

Taul_o_fu’u--The tide is all the way to the low crawling weeds near the beach, and the waves rush in one after the next, as if they’re piled up one after another.

mamaha fu’u--extraordinarily low tide

mamaha pakupaku-- The tide is all the way out, and when the edge of the reef is left high and dry.

A’afa or Hohoko--the tide just left and it comes back in. high tide is followed once again by another high tide

Fakalolo--the outgoing tide is low enough that the incoming tide comes in right away. (similar to a’afa or hohoko)

Fakafuli--the sea is rough with lots of waves and a strong current

Uike Lotu-- New Years. This is a week long celebration where there are a lot of feasts and church services

Falaite lelei-- Good Friday

Faka me-- Reenactments of the crucifixion.

Sune Ko Hono Fa-- Independence day, this is the day that Tonga was no longer a British protectorate

Suilai Ko Hono Fa--Tu'i Siaosi Tupou IV's birthday, also this is the day for Miss Heilala

'Aho Kalisimasi--Christmas day, December 25th

Tupakapakanava--this is a traditional ceremony that is performed at night and is held during times of Royal celebration such as a birthday or coronation of a monarch.

Ha'amonga 'a Maui

Notice the children sitting near the trilithon, you can see how large it is compared to them

The Ha'amonga 'a Maui was built in the 13th century by Tui Tonga Tu'itatui and weighs several tons. There are several legends around the creation of the trilithon such as being a doorway to a former palace, or one presented by the last king to be a way of marking the solstices.

Ko e Sila 'o Tonga

Ko e Sila 'o Tonga
Created in 1875 by Tu'i Siaosi Tupou I

When King Siaosi Tupou I unified the kingdom and produced the first constitution in the year 1875, he also introduced the coat of arms and the beauty behind the meaning of each aspect of the seal.

The crown at the top is surrounded by lou ifi, symbolizing that the people are subject to the king. Below the crown we see the three stars representing the three island groups, Vava'u, Ha'apai, and Tongatapu. The dove and olive branch representing God's desire for Tonga to be a peaceful kingdom. To the right of the dove we see the three swords, symbolizing the three dynasties. The scroll at the bottom reads, "Ko e 'Otua Mo Tonga Ko Hoku Tofi'a" the phrase beautifully translates as "God and Tonga are my inheritance.

An End of Semester Journal Entry

One problem that I’ve been having is I’ve been far too analytical in trying to learn the language. I’ve been going into class as with an English speaker mentality. Having lessons focusing on explaining aspects of English grammar and then attempt to transition into Tongan grammar have me exploring mental tangents concerning the English language only. The lessons are necessary and I am not saying they shouldn’t have been taught: Our class needed them, what I personally need to do is go into this learning environment with an attitude of a child.

Although, being like a child sounds like a spiritual analogy, it goes much deeper than having a teachable demeanor. So far, in this class, I’ve been trying to tackle the Tongan language by translating what I’ve been learning to how it is in the English language, and obviously I haven’t been able to learn as much as I could have because of that mindset.

The best analogy of the brain and language is that the brain is like the hardware of a computer--the computer alone (meaning no programs or operating system) is useless. Language is like an operating system. It allows the brain to function, communicate and formulate ideas.

My goal going forward is learning how the Tongan mind works and operates so I can become not only a Tongan speaker, but a Tongan thinker. I need to find a way to partition my mind to have a place for Tongan thinking to be done, not just charging at the Tongan language like an analytical English speaker.

Another obstacle I need to overcome is my aversion to anything religious. Although I haven’t explicitly mentioned this in class, I do not affiliate myself with any spiritual tradition formally. Christianity is life for Tongans, and not just spiritual life, and I do not share that feeling with them in the least bit. Not that I don’t respect and find that honorable, because I do, but I do not share those same thoughts and feelings.

Looking back on our semester together as a class I wish I would have focused more on figuring out how the Tongan mind works and spending time on conversational skills, but I am looking forward to next semester and hope that my Tongan will get exponentially better.

Malo Aupito