The tauolunga is a traditional Tongan dance. It is a combination of the Samoan Taualuga and the Tongan ula. The type of dance is comparable with (some) Hawaiian hula or the Tahitian aparima. Performance The tau'olunga is a dance for single young women, especially for them to show off on their wedding day. It is rare--but not impossible--for a married couple or an older woman to do a tau'olunga. It is also rare to see a man perform the dance, but he can mimic the dancing girl's movements in an exaggerated manner to make her beauty more striking by comparison. Despite these rare cases, the tau'olunga can be danced at any special occasion. Often it is performed by a small group of girls, up to 10 or so, but can also be performed individually. The assistance of older women is usually limited to only handclaps on the rhythm of the music. This role is called the tuulafale. It is usual for a girl to start the dance, then parents, cousins, family members or friends come on the stage to put money notes on her oiled skin, and then join her in the tuulafale. The prizemoney (fakapale) is a reward for the girl, unless, as often is the case, the dance is performed as part of a fundraising or for a special occasion. It is common for the money to go towards the person being celebrated. For birthdays, the money would go to the person whose birthday they are celebrating. For weddings, it will go to the wedding couple. For a graduation, it will go to the person graduating etc. The tauolunga mainly consists of a series of hand movements, which interpret the meaning of the selected song. However, most of the movements are so stylised that only experienced practitioners will understand their meaning. Many of the typical gestures (haka) are standardised and have their own name. The movement of the head also plays a significant role: the head and eyes should follow the hands on important movements, otherwise they are to be directed to the public. The eyes are never to glance away from the viewers. From time to time, little nods within one beat (teki) or two beats (kalo) must be made with the head. The girl must smile throughout her performance. The movements of the body and the legs are less important. They have to follow hands and