This article describes how Tongans conceptualize and express spatial relationships, including the concept of "front." I introduce the lexical items used in Tongan to express spatial relationships and discuss how these words realize "frames of reference." The study suggests that Tongans prefer different frames of reference for small-scale and large-scale spatial contexts. These preferences are related to the way "front" is assigned to houses, churches, and villages. Use of the "translation" subtype of the relative frame of reference by Tongans in both contexts represents a rare case in the literature on spatial reference.