Ovaka is an island in

Tonga Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania. The country has 171 islands, of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in the southern Pacific Ocean. accordin ...

. It is located within the Vava'u Group in the far north of the country. It is 2800 meters long east–west, and more than 800 meters wide at its widest point. The namesake village is located on the northeast coast. The island had a population of 96 in 2021. Notable residents include Salesi (Charles) Liu, who was one of the six sons of chiefs of high rank chosen to accompany Prince

Viliami Tungī Mailefihi Viliami Tungī Mailefihi CBE (1 November 1888 – 20 July 1941) was a Tongan high chieftain and Prince of Tonga as the husband of Queen Sālote Tupou III. He served as Prime Minister of Tonga from 1923 until his death in 1941. Biography Pr ...

to school at

Newington College Newington College is a multi-campus Independent school, independent Uniting Church in Australia, Uniting Church Single-sex education, single-sex and Mixed-sex education, co-educational Pre-school education, early learning, Primary school, primar ...

Sydney, Australia Sydney is the capital city of the state of New South Wales and the most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about 80 km (50 mi) from the Pacific Ocean ...

, with

James Egan Moulton James Egan Moulton (4 January 1841 – 9 May 1909) was an English-born Australian Methodist minister and headmaster and school president. Early life Moulton was born in North Shields, Northumberland. Many members of his family were Methodis ...

to translate the English Holy Bible into the Tongan language in 1896. Niuingatoni Liu (dec. 1988) named after

is the son of Salesi Liu who was named in honour of his father's endeavor to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

and was a well known punake in Tonga. He composed the

lakalaka 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 ...

for the villages of Navutoka,

Kolonga Kolonga is a village and the most populated settlement located on the northeast coast of Tongatapu in the Hahake District, Kingdom of Tonga. Kolonga is a hereditary estate of Lord Nuku. The current population of Kolonga was recorded in the Tonga ...

and Niutoua in

Tongatapu Tongatapu is the main island of Tonga and the site of its capital, Nukuʻalofa, Nukualofa. It is located in Tonga's southern island group, to which it gives its name, and is the country's most populous island, with 74,611 residents (2016), 70.5% o ...

. To this day, his compositions are still performed at auspicious occasions.

References

Islands of Tonga Populated places in Vavaʻu {{Tonga-geo-stub