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Tonga
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The Kingdom of Tonga (Tongan for "south")
is an archipelago in the southern Pacific Ocean,
about a third of the way between New Zealand and
Hawaii. It lies south of Samoa and east of Fiji.
History
Main article: History of Tonga
Archaeological evidence shows that the first
settlers in Tonga sailed from the Santa Cruz
Islands, as part of the original Austronesian-speakers'
(Lapita) migration which originated out of S.E.
Asia some 6000 years before present.
Archaeological dating places Tonga as the oldest
known site in Polynesia for the distinctive
Lapita ceramic ware, at 2800-2750 years before
present. The "Lapita" people lived and sailed,
traded, warred, and intermarried in the islands
now known as Tonga, Samoa, and Fiji for 1000
years, before more explorers set off to the east
to discover the Marquesas, Tahiti, and
eventually the rest of the Pacific Ocean
islands. For this reason, Tonga, Samoa, and Fiji
are described by anthropologists as the cradle
of Polynesian culture and civilization.
By the 12th century, Tongans, and the Tongan
paramount chief, the Tu'i Tonga, were known
across the Pacific, from Niue to Tikopia,
sparking some historians to refer to a 'Tongan
Empire'. A network of interacting navigators,
chiefs, and adventurers might be a better term
although the empire did have its own dynasties.
It could be compared to the Scandinavian
kingdoms and the Vikings. In the 15th century
and again in the 17th, civil war erupted. It was
in this context that the first Europeans
arrived, beginning with Dutch explorers Willem
Schouten and Jacob Le Maire in 1616, who called
on the northern island of Niuatoputapu, and Abel
Tasman, who visited Tongatapu and Ha'apai in
1643. Later noteworthy European visits were by
Captain Cook in 1773, 1774, and 1777, the first
London missionaries in 1797, and the Wesleyan
Methodist Walter Lawry Buller in 1822.
Tonga was united into a Polynesian kingdom in
1845 by the ambitious young warrior, strategist,
and orator Taufa'ahau. He held the chiefly title
of Tu'i Kanokupolu, but was baptised with the
name King George. In 1875, with the help of
missionary Shirley Baker, he declared Tonga a
constitutional monarchy, formally adopted the
western royal style, emancipated the 'serfs',
enshrined a code of law, land tenure, and
freedom of the press, and limited the power of
the chiefs. Tonga, alias the Friendly Islands,
became a British protected state under a Treaty
of Friendship on 18 May 1900, when European
settlers and rival Tongan chiefs tried to oust
the second king. Within the British Empire,
which posted no higher permanent representative
on Tonga then a British Consul, it was since
1901 part of the British Western Pacific
Territories (under a High Commissioner, on Fiji)
until 1952.
The Treaty of Friendship and protectorate status
ended in 1970 under arrangements established
prior to her death by Queen Salote Tupou III.
Tonga joined the Commonwealth of Nations in 1970
(atypically as an autochthonous monarchy), and
the United Nations in 1999. While exposed to
colonial forces, Tonga has never lost indigenous
governance, a fact that makes Tonga unique in
the Pacific and gives Tongans much pride, as
well as confidence in the monarchal system. The
British High Commission in Tonga was scheduled
to close in 2005. [1]
Geography
Main article: Geography of Tonga
Tonga is an archipelago in the South Pacific
consisting of 169 islands, 36 of them inhabited,
and is divided into three main groups – Vava'u,
Ha'apai, and Tongatapu, which together cover an
800-kilometre (500 miles)-long north–south line.
The largest island, Tongatapu, on which the
capital city of Nuku'alofa is located, covers
257 square kilometres (99 sq mi). Geologically,
the Tongan islands are generally comprised of
two types: volcanic islands rising directly from
the ocean floor (e.g. Kao and Tofua in the
Ha'apai group), and seismically uplifted coral
limestone islands overlaying an older volcanic
base (e.g. Tongatapu). The active volcanic
islands are situated in an approximate
north-south line located west of the more
populated islands. A new volcanic island broke
the ocean's surface in the Ha'apai group during
the 1990s.
The climate is basically subtropical with a
distinct warm period (December–April), during
which the temperatures rise above 32 °C (90 °F),
and a cooler period (May–November), with
temperatures rarely rising above 27 °C (80 °F).
The temperature increases from 23 °C to 27 °C
(74 °F to 80 °F), and the annual rainfall is
from 1,700 to 2,970 millimetres (67 to 117 in)
as one moves from Tongatapu in the south to the
more northerly islands closer to the Equator.
The mean daily humidity is 80%.
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Background:
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The
archipelago of "The Friendly Islands" was united
into a Polynesian kingdom in 1845. It became a
constitutional monarchy in 1875 and a British
protectorate in 1900. Tonga acquired its
independence in 1970 and became a member of the
Commonwealth of Nations. It remains the only
monarchy in the Pacific. |
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Location:
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Oceania, archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean,
about two-thirds of the way from Hawaii to New
Zealand |
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Geographic coordinates:
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20 00
S, 175 00 W
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Map references:
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Oceania |
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Area:
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total: 748 sq km
water: 30 sq km
land: 718 sq km |
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Area - comparative:
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four
times the size of Washington, DC |
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Land boundaries:
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0 km
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Coastline:
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419
km |
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Maritime claims:
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continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth
of exploitation
territorial sea: 12 NM
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM |
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Climate:
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tropical; modified by trade winds; warm season
(December to May), cool season (May to December)
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Terrain:
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most
islands have limestone base formed from uplifted
coral formation; others have limestone overlying
volcanic base |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Kao Island
1,033 m |
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Natural resources:
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fish,
fertile soil |
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Nationality:
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noun: Tongan(s)
adjective: Tongan |
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Ethnic groups:
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Polynesian, Europeans about 300 |
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Religions:
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Christian (Free Wesleyan Church claims over 30,000
adherents) |
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Languages:
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Tongan, English |
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Currency:
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pa'anga (TOP)
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Currency code:
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TOP
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Exchange rates:
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pa'anga per US dollar - 2.1920 (January 2002),
2.1236 (2001), 1.7585 (2000), 1.5991 (1999), 1.4920
(1998), 1.2635 (1997) |
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Internet country code:
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.to
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