Languages in Tonga

Lea Faka-Tonga, also called the Tongan language, is the main language for everyday, family, church, community and cultural life. English is the main additional language for education, administration, international mobility and many workplaces. In the 2021 Census, among people aged five and over, 96% could read and write simple sentences in Tongan and 89% in English. School attendance among children aged 5 to 14 was 96.2%. The Ministry of Education and Training, especially its Curriculum and Assessment Division and Examinations and Assessment Division, sets curriculum materials, teacher development, examinations and standards. National language learning runs from early childhood education through Form 7. Tongan and English are separate learning areas and also support Language Across the Curriculum, where language skills are used across other subjects. Form 2 includes English and Tongan examinations. Form 6 and Form 7 include English and Lea Fakatonga, with Chinese, French and Japanese available as documented foreign-language subjects or examinations in some school pathways. Tonga National University offers a higher-education pathway through its School of Tongan Language and Culture, established in 2024. Its Bachelor of Tongan Language and Cultural Studies covers language skills, grammar, communication, texts and translation, literature, culture, values and ethics. Entry can be based on Tonga National Form 7 or USP Foundation courses with at least a grade 5 in PSSC English, and recognition of prior learning is considered. The published research does not provide a confirmed programme duration or tuition fee. USP Tonga Campus offers Tongan and Niuafoʻou courses including TG111, TG211, TG212, TG311 and TG321. Tongan courses are taught face to face at the Tonga Campus and are not necessarily offered every year. Linguistics courses may be available online across USP campuses or face to face at Laucala, so the current cohort and delivery mode should be checked with USP Tonga. USP Pacific TAFE also provides English pathways. Preliminary English A and B support lower-intermediate learners in everyday and academic skills, while Foundation English A and B can prepare students for degree study. In the 2026 Tonga schedule, pre-degree non-science courses cost 470 Paʻanga each and science courses cost 485 Paʻanga each. School-based Foundation English lists a 60 Paʻanga administration charge and 65 Paʻanga per course. Placement can require LLF15 or both LLF15 and LLF14 depending on TNFSC English results. Niuafoʻou has regional and heritage relevance, especially on Niuafoʻou and ʻEua. The Education Strategy 2025–2030 describes Tonga and Niuafoʻou as intended base languages from early childhood education through Form 4 and recognises a right for Niuafoʻou learners to learn through their indigenous language. The strategy proposes a committee, curriculum development, a pilot, wider rollout and teacher training, but Niuafoʻou is not yet evidenced as a formally recognised and widely established school subject. A planned USP Tonga and Niuafoʻou Language Certificate franchise at Tonga Institute of Education or Tonga National University is therefore a developing pathway rather than a confirmed nationwide programme. Language learning also appears in job-related training. For example, tourism and hospitality studies at Tonga National University teach interpersonal communication in Tongan and English, including customer service and handling complaints. USP provides online linguistics study, while a separate national digital language-course and examination system has not been evidenced. The Ministry of Education and Training has identified renewed Centre for DFL work and more affordable connectivity and bandwidth as development needs. A general individual entitlement to free adult language courses or a language certificate has not been established in the available information.