The important features of how to speak in the Tongan Language, Greetings etc
The first edition of this book was the product of two years of teaching in the vernacular, examining what has been written on Tongan, and now and then getting suggestions from the students. Additional teaching material is included in this 1992 production.
I have naturally relied heavily on my knowledge of language. I consulted Churchward and Shumway, whose works I list in the references. It is not meant to be comprehensive but to present those aspects of the language, which a learner will find useful, and later able to develop.
The book caters for the requirements of Volunteer Service Abroad and similar organisations, civil servants in New Zealand and those who intend to go and work in Tonga, university students and intending researchers in Tonga, and members of the general public who want a basic grasp of the language.
As Tongan is largely an oral language, much importance has been placed on greetings. The teacher may or may not follow the suggested patterns explicitly. There is plenty of room to be innovative. For example, the teacher can drill patterns of sentences of pronunciation, or rearrange the sequence in which a topic is studied, or make up further exercises for the students to do, in order to reinforce certain patterns.
I aim in this first book to familiarise students with the proposed and postponed cardinal pronouns.
Edgar M Tu'inukuafe (ex Tutor, PIERC)
First printed in 1979. Published by the Pacific Islanders' Education Resource Centre.
Revised and reprinted 1992 (4th edition)