Editing History of Tuvalu (section)

===Traditional uses of material from the native broadleaf forest===
[[Charles Hedley]] (1896) identified the uses of plants and trees from the native broadleaf forest as including:<ref name="CHF1"/>
* '''Food plants''': [[Coconut]]; and ''Ferra'', native fig (''[[Ficus]] aspem'').<ref name="CHF1"/>
* '''Fibre''': Coconut; ''Ferra''; ''Fala'', Screw Pine, ''[[Pandanus]]''; ''Fau'' or ''Fo fafini'', or woman's fibre tree (''[[Hibiscus tiliaceus]]'').<ref name="CHF1"/>
* '''Timber''': ''Fau'' or ''Fo fafini''; ''Pouka'', (''[[Hernandia]] peltata''); ''Ngia'' or ''Ingia'', (''[[Pemphis]] acidula''); ''Miro'', (''[[Thespesia populnea]]''); and ''Tonga'' (''Tongo''), (''[[Rhizophora mucronata]]'').<ref name="CHF1"/>
* '''Dye''': ''Valla valla'', (''[[Premna tahitensis]]''); ''Tonga'' (''Tongo''), (''[[Rhizophora mucronata]]''); and ''Nonou'' (''Nonu''), (''[[Morinda citrifolia]]'').<ref name="CHF1"/>
* '''Scent''': ''Fetau'', (''[[Calophyllum inophyllum]]''); ''Jiali'', (''[[Gardenia taitensis]]''); and ''Boua'' (''[[Guettarda speciosa]]''); ''Valla valla'', (''[[Premna tahitensis]]''); and [[Crinum]].<ref name="CHF1"/>
* '''Medicinal''': ''Tulla tulla'', (''[[Triumfetta]] procumbens''); ''Nonou'' (''Nonu''), (''[[Morinda citrifolia]]''); ''Tausoun'', (''[[Heliotropium foertherianum]]''); ''Valla valla'', (''[[Premna tahitensis]]''); ''Talla talla gemoa'', (''[[Psilotum]] triquetrum''); ''Lou'', (''[[Cardamine]] sarmentosa''); and ''Lakoumonong'', (''[[Wedelia]] strigulosa'').<ref name="CHF1"/>

These plants and trees are still used in the [[Art of Tuvalu]] to make traditional artwork and handicraft. Tuvaluan women continue to make ''Te titi tao'', which is a traditional skirt made of dried [[pandanus]] leaves that are dyed using ''Tongo'' (''[[Rhizophora mucronata]]'') and ''Nonu'' (''[[Morinda citrifolia]]'').<ref name="AoT">{{cite web |last =Takemoto| first =Shoko |title= The Art of Tuvalu – Climate Change through the eyes of artists in Tuvalu| publisher= exposure.co |date=4 November 2015|url= https://shoko.exposure.co/the-art-of-tuvalu |access-date=23 December 2015}}</ref> The art of making a titi tao is passed down from Fafinematua (elder women) to the Tamaliki Fafine (young women) who are preparing for their first [[Fatele]].<ref name="AoT"/>