Te sina o fenua.
“The grey-hairs of the land speak for the island.”
A traditional term for the Falekaupule, the council of elders on each Tuvaluan island, literally "the grey-hairs of the land" — the elders whose age and experience give them authority to speak and decide on behalf of their community.
— Traditional Tuvalu Wisdom, Tuvalu
Source: Traditional Tuvaluan governance term (te sina o fenua), documented in the Falekaupule Act 1997 and Tuvalu constitutional and Pacific-governance scholarship
More Proverbs from Tuvalu
Tuvalu for the Almighty.
The national motto of Tuvalu, expressing the nation's foundation on deep religious faith and its dependence on a higher power for protection and guidance.
Eight standing together.
The literal meaning of the name "Tuvalu," referring to the eight traditionally inhabited coral atolls that united to form the nation; a ninth island, Niulakita, was settled later.
Tefolaha, my friend!
A libation phrase spoken by the people of Nanumea while pouring the last of a drink onto the ground, honoring their founding ancestor-spirit Tefolaha and invoking his continued protection.
The beauty in the Pacific lies in the unity of hearts.
A line from the Tuvaluan fatele song "A galiga o fenua," calling on people to put their efforts together for the things their community and their ocean environment need.
Kaitasi: the land, the decisions, and the harvest belong to all of us together.
The Tuvaluan value of kaitasi, or shared ownership — land, resources, and decision-making are held communally among family and community rather than as individual property.
Alofa is caring for those who have no land of their own.
Alofa (love, compassion) obliges Tuvaluans to look after community members without land or family able to fish and farm for them, extending even to outsiders in need.