The Birth of Polynesia: An Archaeological Journey Through the Kingdom of Tonga

The Birth of Polynesia recounts the story of first Polynesian settlement in the Kingdom of Tonga and its expansion from a founder colony on Tongatapu north through a myriad of islands to Sāmoa and beyond. The impact of these peoples on pristine environments, their material culture and art, their motivations, the chronology of settlement, and the reflections of this ancient past in the Tongan present are among the issues contained within. This book also is about a 30 year-long archaeological journey and the many different field projects involved in pursuit of the first Polynesians.