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Every type of costume (teunga) has its own proper name. The dress reaches from just above the breasts down to the knees (or sometimes past the knee), leaving her arms and legs bare. As long skirts are the traditional apparel for Tongan girls, this is an occasion to show off her legs. If they are fair, the better.
The lakalaka (walking briskly) is a Tongan group dance where the performers are largely standing still and make gestures with their arms only. It is considered as the national dance of Tonga and part of the intangible human heritage. It is the ideal dance at formal occasions, like the birthday of the king or the opening of a church.
A similar Rotuman dance, also derived from the 'Uvean original, is similarly called the ka'loa. Tonga College students performing a kailao for the King's 70th birthday (1988) The 'Ikale Tahi , the Tongan national rugby union team, used to perform the kailao with kailao clubs or sticks, as they did against Wales in 1974.
Any description of Tongan culture that limits itself to what Tongans see as anga fakatonga would give a seriously distorted view of what people actually do, in Tonga, or in diaspora, because accommodations are so often made to anga fakapālangi. The following account tries to give both the idealized and the on-the-ground versions of Tongan culture.
The māʻuluʻulu is a traditional Tongan dance, performed by a group of seated men and women; stylistically, the dance form is a direct successor of the ancient Tongan ʻotuhaka having been synthesized with the Samoan Māuluulu which was imported during the 19th century.
The royal couple wore garlands of red flowers and a handmade wrap skirt called ta'ovala, given as a traditional sign of respect, as they toured Tonga. Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan don Tongan ...
The ula (dance) is an ancient Tongan group dance, already reported by early European navigators like Captain Cook. It is also known as fahaʻi-ula (split dance), which may be degenerated to fahaʻiula. Traditionally, it is performed after an ʻotuhaka. [1] It is still danced nowadays, although less popular than its descendant the tauʻolunga.
The ʻotuhaka (ʻotu-haka: row-of-dancemovements) is a traditional Tongan group dance with prominent Samoan influence wherein the performers are seated and make gestures with their arms only, with some accentuation from head and body. [1] Originally the ʻotuhaka was performed by older, chiefly ladies only, who were supposed to be too old to stand.