An Account of the Natives of the Tonga Islands, in the South Pacific Ocean
With an Original Grammar and Vocabulary of their Language

This two-volume second edition, published in 1818, offers an important early insight into the customs and language of the Tongan people.

William Mariner (Author), John Martin (Edited by)

9781108057554, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 15 November 2012

502 pages, 7 music examples
21.6 x 14 x 2.8 cm, 0.63 kg

In November 1806, the damaged Port-au-Prince arrived at what Captain Cook had called the Friendly Islands. William Charles Mariner (1791–1853) was among the few crew members spared by the native inhabitants. He lived there for four years. Published in 1818, this two-volume second edition offers an important early insight into Tongan customs and language. As editor John Martin (1789–1869) explains, the structure of a nation's language is vital to the consideration of its history. So successful was the first edition of 1817 - expanded upon here to include 'generally corroborative, and in a few instances somewhat corrective' information from another erstwhile inhabitant - that within months of its publication a French translation appeared; German and American editions soon followed. Volume 2 covers diverse aspects of Tongan society, from its music to notions of the soul, and includes a detailed grammar of the language and 2,000 words of vocabulary.

15. The king annihilates the divine chiefdom of Tooitonga
16. Anecdote of the late king, character of the present king
17. Rank in society
18. Enumeration of the principal notions on which the religion of Tonga is founded
19. Farther particulars respecting the divine chiefs
20. Cava root ceremony
21. The state of the healing art in these islands
22. General observations on the principal arts and manufactures
23. General habits of chiefs, matabooles, mooas, women and children
A grammar of the Tonga language
A vocabulary, Tonga and English
A vocabulary, English and Tonga.

Subject Areas: Social & cultural anthropology, ethnography [JHMC]