There are also concepts of democracy, transparency, and accountability, and they have not been conventionalised because we have not really talked enough about those concepts. We have to equip our language to be able to carry out its function of conveying ideas and concepts of everyday life... it will enable the language to survive as a living thing

The compilation of the first Tongan monolingual dictionary is expected to be completed by 2007.

Dr Melenaite Taumoefolau, who heads the Tongan Dictionary Project said in Nuku'alofa on September 24 that since the compilation of the dictionary started in March this year they had compiled about 6,000 entries but were aiming at compiling at least 20,000 entries of head-words or more.

Melenaite said that it was very important at this early stage of the Dictionary Project for people to know that the dictionary that they are working on is a general dictionary, and it is a descriptive and not a prescriptive dictionary.

"I think there are people who are expecting a Tongan purist language dictionary, but first I don't think we can, and secondly, the role of a dictionary is to be descriptive and not prescriptive. What can actually be used, rather then what we think should be used."

Melenaite said that language purist is an attitude of trying to keep the language pure, which is in conflict with modern linguists' views, "that language is a living thing and it grows with the time and with technology, and that we can't box it in to meet our needs. Nothing is considered correct in the modern way of linguistics, and that is against the purist attitude to language. But we are making a point that you can't regulate language, even if you try."

Melenaite said that Language Commissions in some countries, including New Zealand are facing the problem that after they try to regulate the language no one wants to use their words. "There is a Maori Language Commission, they have compiled authentic Maori words for new technology products, so instead of saying 'komipiuta' for 'computer', they say things like 'Thinking Box', in Maori. So what they are saying is that people should use those words instead of 'computer', but the conflict happens when they have their list of words and no one uses it."

She said that even though the monolingual dictionary will be a general dictionary it will include technical words which are used everyday. "Like if you are going to hospital or to court there are words that one should know what they mean. But we are not going to use words that are used only by nurses and doctors, and legal terms that you find only in the law books."

Melenaite said that they would use only words that have been accepted and that have a public meaning. "Only words that have been conventionalised, for example the word 'isiu, for issue. Has it been conventionalised so that it now has a public meaning, and that we can refer to it as a Tongan word? If the answer is yes, then we will put it in the dictionary. "If the answer is no, then it means that the word is known by a only a certain part of the population. What it means is that only people who could speak English know the meaning of 'issue'.

"On the other hand there were words which were conventionalised, like 'taipaleti', then it went out of fashion, now we are using 'taipe'. We will include 'taipe', and 'taipaleti', only for its historical significance. 'Taipaleti', gets its etimology from English typewriter."

Melenaite said that when a language doesn't talk about certain subjects, translation is very difficult. "Translating from Tongan into English is problematic. Translating the poetry of Queen Salote, for example. When she praised Tongan chiefs, and talked about things that Tongans take for granted, that one should not ask questions but to praise and uphold the chiefs. When you translate that into English it sounds very different. What may sound positive in one language, sounds very negative in another language, and that is because the subject matter if we are talking about it in English is different from when we are talking about it in Tongan.

"If you translate from English into Tongan, things that we don't discuss using the Tongan language. Say for example, the word 'computer'. We can't translate it into Tongan because we don't discuss computers in the Tongan language. So unless technology grows in Tonga so that we can talk about that particular technology in Tongan, then it is conventionalised for us to talk about it, and then it is possible to translate." Melenaite said that the process of conventionalisation happens automatically through usage. "That is what I mean that different languages talk about different things. So if we don't talk about a subject matter we will not come up with the appropriate word. Look around this room, most of these objects have been conventionalised, there is a 'peni' for pen, 'komipiuta' for computer, 'sea' for chair, 'tepile' for table.

"There are also concepts of democracy, transparency, and accountability, and they have not been conventionalised because we have not really talked enough about those concepts.

"We have to equip our language to be able to carry out its function of conveying ideas and concepts of everyday life that we want to communicate to other people. If we do that it will enable the language to survive as a living thing. If we keep switching to English then we will continue to evade the issue, you are not giving the language a chance to carry out its function."

Melenaite said she was saddened when she heard more and more English words have been used during debate in parliament. "Because people don't understand what they are talking about, and for me that is discrimination against the people who don't speak English, so they are looking down on the Tongan people. How can you profess to be democratic if you shut out a good percentage of the population with the language that you are using."