Tonga

Facts and pictures

There are some excellent places to look for facts and information about the history, people and culture of Tonga.

BBC

This is a well-known news website and a great place to find reliable and up-to-date information.

• Use the search box and enter the name of the island you are interested in.
• Select the result that says Profile, like Tonga country profile.

Lonely Planet

Lonely Planet is a company that writes travel guides and they often have some useful free facts and pictures of different places around the world.

• Search for 'Tonga' to find their Destination Tonga travel guide.
• Choose the In detail section.
• Look at the Basic facts, or find out about the History of Tonga.
• Go to Further reading to find even more information.

Tips: Websites that have .com or .co in the address can have good information, but you need to assess how reliable it is. Check the About us link on the website, if you can find one. That can tell you what the company’s mission and values are.

Daily life

These websites have more detailed information about Tonga.

Britannica School

This is one of the EPIC resources, a collection of reliable databases covering lots of different topics. Britannica allows you to choose a reading level - for more information we suggest using the Secondary option.

• Choose the Middle level and put in your keyword 'Tonga'.
• This will bring up the Tonga entry which covers the geography, plants and animals, people and culture, economy, and history of Tonga.
• Try the Images & Videos and Related tabs to find more information.

Tips: To get to the EPIC resources you will need a password from your school librarian first. Or you can chat with one of our AnyQuestions librarians between 1 and 6pm Monday to Friday and they will help you online. Some EPIC databases may also be available through your public library.

Encyclopedia of Earth

This resource focuses on the natural environment with a good contents list at the beginning of each article as well as sources where the information came from.

• Enter the name of your chosen country or island.
• As well as some background information, there are several maps of Tonga, including local maps, world maps and satellite views.

New Zealand connection

New Zealand has a strong connection with Tonga.

Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand

Te Ara is an excellent starting point for all questions about New Zealand Aotearoa.

• Use the search word 'Tonga'.
• Results will include Tongans, which is all about Tongan people living in New Zealand.

Tips: If we scroll down to the bottom of the page we can see that the website belongs to the Ministry for Culture & Heritage, so the information is well-researched and reliable.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade - Manatū Aorere

This site will help with understanding about New Zealand's relationship with the Pacific Islands.

• Select Tonga.
• Read the quick facts and other information.

Ministry for Pacific Peoples - Te Manatū mā Ngā Iwi o Te Moana-nui-a-Kiwa

This New Zealand government department is responsible for policies that improve life for Pacific peoples. There is lots of information here, including a population breakdown of New Zealand's Pacific Island residents.

Tips: We like sites like this because they’re reliable. You can tell because of their web address – they have either .govt or .ac, meaning they are from government or educational organisations. They’re also New Zealand sites, so relevant for us.

Books

These books will give you more information about Tonga, its people, and the Tongan language.

• Tonga by Melanie Guile
• Tonga by Lesieli I. Kupu MacIntyre
• Tonga by Carol Jones
• Tongan for Kids by Jari Jah Jah
• My Tongan alphabet : with numbers and colours by Bradley Walker.

SCIS no: 1850793