Tonga Divisions

Divisions of Tonga

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Updates:�

Update 13 to Geopolitical Entities and Codes (formerly FIPS 10-4) is dated 2013-09-30. It provides FIPS codes for the five divisions, superseding the FIPS codes for the three island groups.

ISO 3166-2 Newsletter I-8, published on 2007-04-17, has new ISO division codes for Tonga. They are shown in the table below. International standard ISO 3166-2, as originally published (1998-12-15), mentioned that there were five divisions, but declined to list them. It said they were "not relevant". An even earlier version, ISO/DIS 3166-2 (draft international standard), showed three island groups with their codes.

The table below is based on one that has appeared in the Statesman's Year-Book since ~1990. The only difference between the island councils and the divisions is that the island council of Tongatapu corresponds to the divisions of 'Eua, Niuas, and Tongatapu.

Country overview:�

Short nameTONGA
ISO codeTO
FIPS codeTN
LanguageTonga (to), English (en)
Time zone+13
CapitalNuku'alofa

Tonga became a protectorate of Great Britain on 1900-05-18, formalizing a previous agreement. Great Britain abandoned the relationship on 1970-06-04, leaving Tonga completely independent.

Other names of country:�

  1. Danish: Tonga
  2. Dutch: Tonga, Koninkrijk Tonga (formal)
  3. English: Kingdom of Tonga (formal), Friendly Islands (obsolete), Toga (obsolete)
  4. Finnish: Tonga
  5. French: Tonga fp
  6. German: Tonga n
  7. Italian: Tonga
  8. Norwegian: Tonga, Kongeriket Tonga (formal)
  9. Portuguese: Tonga n (m in Brazil), Reino m do Tonga (formal)
  10. Russian: Королевство Тонга (formal)
  11. Spanish: Tonga, Reino m de Tonga (formal)
  12. Swedish: Tonga
  13. Turkish: Tonga Krallığı (formal)
  14. Tonga: Pule 'anga Tonga (formal)

Origin of name:�

shortened form of Tongatabu, from tonga: island, tabu: sacred

Primary subdivisions:�

Tonga is divided into five divisions.

DivisionHASCISOFIPSPopulationArea(km.�)Area(mi.�)Capital
'EuaTO.EU01TN045,2068734Ohonua, 'Eua I.
Ha'apaiTO.HA02TN017,57011042Pangai, Lifuka I.
NiuasTO.NI03TN051,6657228Hihifo, Niuatoputapu I.
TongatapuTO.TT04TN0272,045261101Nuku`alofa, Tongatapu I.
Vava'uTO.VA05TN0315,50511946Neiafu, Vava`u I.
5 divisions101,991649251

Further subdivisions:

See the Districts of Tonga page.

The divisions are subdivided into 23 districts. Some sources list three island groups instead of five divisions. In this scheme, Tongatapu includes 'Eua and Niuas.

Island groupHASCISOFIPS
Ha'apaiTO.HAHTN01
TongatapuTO.TOTTN02
Vava'uTO.VAVTN03
  • HASC: Hierarchical administrative subdivision codes.
  • ISO: Codes from ISO/DIS 3166-2.
  • FIPS: Codes from FIPS PUB 10-4.

Territorial extent:�

  1. Ha'apai includes the islands of the Ha'apai group, from Hunga Ha'apai to Kelefesia to Ha'ano to Kao. The largest are Lifuka and Tofua.
  2. 'Eua includes 'Eua Island.
  3. Niuas includes Niuatoputapu, Niuafo'ou, and Tafahi.
  4. Tongatapu includes the Tongatapu Group, consisting of Tongatapu, 'Euaiki, and smaller islands, and 'Ata Island to the south.
  5. Vava'u includes the islands of the Vava'u group, from Vava'u to Late to Fonualei.

Other names of subdivisions:�

Niuas: Ongo Niua (variant)

Population history:

Division1976-11-301986-11-281996-11-302006-11-30
'Eua4,4864,3934,9345,206
Ha'apai10,7928,9198,1387,570
Niuas2,3282,3682,0181,665
Tongatapu57,41163,79466,97972,045
Vava'u15,06815,17515,71515,505
Total90,08594,64997,784101,991

Sources:�

  1. [1] 1979 Demographic Yearbook, 31st Ed. Statistical Office, United Nations, New York, 1980 (retrieved 2011-12-28).
  2. [2] The Tonga department of statistics website had preliminary 2006 census data (retrieved 2007-07-14).
  3. [3] Tonga National Population Census 2006 (retrieved 2011-12-28).
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