The traditional history of Nukulaelae is that a white-skinned man was the first person to sight the island, but he did not settle as there were no trees. Nukulaelae means 'the land of sands'. Later, according to tradition, Valoa from Vaitupu discovered Nukulaelae while on a fishing expedition. He returned to Nukulaelae and planted coconut trees and eventually settled on Nukulaelae with his family. On the islet of Tumuiloto was a "malae" named Fagafale where religious rights honouring ancestral spirits were practiced. On the islet of Niuoka is a large stone at a place called Te Faleatua - 'the house of the gods.'