Tongan and English. Tongan is a major western Polynesian dialect that is closely related to Samoan and several other smaller groups of Polynesians in the area, including Niue, Tokelau, Uvea and Futuna. Historical and comparative linguists have basically determined related languages descended from the same "family" tend to get simpler as time goes by; or for example, younger languages in the same family might have fewer sounds. In this respect, modern Tongan has more phonological sounds than Samoan, but not as many as Fijian, prompting such linguists to theorize that Tongan is probably older than Samoan but not as old as Fijian. Of course, this is a simplification of a complex issue.
A hint to help you pronounce Tongan words more correctly: The sound represented by the letters 'ng' are pronounced as in the English word 'singer' [that is, an unreleased 'g'], and never as in 'finger' [or a released 'g']. Unlike English, however, the Tongan 'ng' sound can come at the beginning of a word, but it's still pronounced the same way. Also, think of the single vowels as if they were Spanish. So, please try again if you're saying "tong-guh."
