page_title: Nukuʻalofa
section_title: First western records of Nukuʻalofa
hierarchical_section_title: Nukuʻalofa / History / First western records of Nukuʻalofa
caption_attribution_description: English: This is the first recorded sketch of the Bay of Nuku'alofa, Capital of Tonga by Captain James Cook during his last visit to Tonga in 1777. This is copied from the book as mention in the source: Captain James Cook, A Voyage to the Pacific Ocean, 1783, page 277. This book is available on Google Books and available on the Public Domain.
context_page_description: Nukuʻalofa is the capital of Tonga. It is located on the north coast of the island of Tongatapu, in the country's southernmost island group.
context_section_description: On 10 June 1777, British captain James Cook wrote of his arrival at their anchorage place. His description of the place confirmed, with his map, that this was the bay of Nukuʻalofa.
  At length, about two in the afternoon, we arrived at our intended station. It was a very snug place, formed by the shore of Tongataboo on the South East, and two small islands on the East and North East. Here we anchored in ten fathoms water, over a bottom of oozy sand; distant from the shore one-third of a mile [500 m]."
  Cook never used the name Nukualofa or any other spelling for the reports of this voyage, but he mentioned the island of Pangaimodoo (Pangaimotu) which was to the east of his anchorage position. Captain Cook also wrote that he travelled by canoes to visit Mooa (Muʻa) where Paulaho and other great men lived. The house that Paulaho provided was on the beach 500 metres (¹⁄₃ mi) from the ship. Reference to his map shows that he must have landed and stayed in the Siesia area, the eastern part of modern Nukuʻalofa. Cook also drafted the first map of the bay of Nukuʻalofa.
  The first written record for Nukuʻalofa is stated in the first dedicated book for Tonga by George Vason which was published in 1810. George Vason was an English missionary from the London Missionary Society, who arrived in Tonga in 1797. George Vason wrote of their arrival that:
  "Before we could well come to an anchor, the ship was surrounded by the natives, who flocked to us from every adjacent Island. The place, before which we anchored, was called Noogollefa: it was near an Island, named Bonghy-moddoo; on which former navigators pitched their tents, as a convenient spot, on account of its separation from the main Island, to preserve themselves from being too much incommoded by the natives."
  That was the first mention of Nukuʻalofa, spelled as Noogoollefa. Vason's unusual spelling of Nukuʻalofa and Pangaimotu (as "Bongy-Moddoo") was because the standard Tongan alphabet would not be developed until 1826–27.
  The second oldest book dedicated to Tonga was by William Mariner, adopted son of Fīnau ʻUlukālala, which was published in 1817. Mariner described his experiences during the years he was the adopted son of ʻUlukālala (1806–1810). He described the civil war and the siege of the Fort of Nukuʻalofa, which fell to ʻUlukālala and his warriors.
  The third attempt of Christian missionaries were recorded in April 1826, when two Tahitian London Missionaries were detained by Tupou the chief of Nukuʻalofa.
  In March 1826, the four men left Tahiti in the Minerva, their destination Fiji. But at Nukuʻalofa, Tonga, their plans were disrupted by the high chief Tupou (Aleamotuʻa). From Davies' perspective the Tahitian were placed under detention at Tongatapu: “The chief called Tupou would not let them proceed. He had been himself a resident in Lageba and calls himself the friend of Tuineau, the chief of Lageba and as such he took possession of the present intended for the Fijian chief".
  The arrival of the Methodist missionaries in Nukuʻalofa in 1827 reinforced the Christian faith. The persecution suffered by Christians in Hihifo and Hahake forced a lot of people to seek refuge in Nukuʻalofa. Thanks to the encouragement of Tupou, the King of Nukuʻalofa, this was the beginning of the expanding of Nukuʻalofa to become the major center of Christianity in Tonga.
  The US Exploring Expedition met with King Josiah (Aleamotuʻa) in 1840.
  The final phase of the arrival of Christianity in Tonga was the arrival of Father Chevron, or Patele Sevelo, in 1842. He wrote that he arrived in Nukuʻalofa in 1842 and met the Tuʻi Kanokupolu Aleamotuʻa who was baptised by the Wesleyan as Sosaia.
  In conclusion, these landings turned Nukuʻalofa from a small village and fort into the center of Tonga during the introduction of Christianity. From the earliest records for Nukuʻalofa, early writers always referred to the settlement as Noogollefa (1797), Nioocalofa (1806), Nukualofa (1826 by Methodist) and Noukou-Alofa (1842 by French Catholic priests). There was no other mention of any other name of the settleme
caption: The first recorded Map of Tongataboo Harbour as sketched by Captain Cook in 1777. The map clearly shows the Bay of Nukuʻalofa and his anchored position near Pangaimotu. Small islands of Nukuʻalofa were named with phonetic spelling, including Atata, Pangaimotu, Makahaʻa, and Fetoa.
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