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The Chamorro people (; also CHamoru) are the indigenous people of the Mariana Islands, politically divided between the United States territory of Guam and the encompassing Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in Micronesia. Today, significant Chamorro populations also exist in several U.S. states, including Hawaii, California, Washington, Texas, Tennessee, Oregon, and Nevada, all of which together are designated as Pacific Islander Americans according to the U.S. Census. According to the 2000 Census, about 64,590 people of Chamorro ancestry live in Guam and another 19,000 live in the Northern Marianas. Another 93,000 live outside the Marianas in Hawaii and the West Coast of the United States.

The Chamorros are primarily Austronesian, and many have Filipino ancestry (another Austronesian group). There are also descendants of Japanese people. Many may also have a small amount of Spanish and Mexican ancestry.

Chamorros and other Micronesians constitute about half the current population of Guam.

Etymology

Precolonial society in the Marianas was based on a caste system, ''Chamori'' being the name of the ruling, highest caste.

After Spain annexed and colonized the Marianas, the caste system eventually became extinct under Spanish rule, and all of the indigenous residents of the archipelago eventually came to be referred to by the Spanish exonym ''Chamorro''. The name ''CHamoru'' is an endonym derived from the indigenous orthography of the Spanish exonym. The digraph ''ch'' is treated as a single letter, hence both characters are capitalized at the beginning of a sentence or proper noun, much like '' ij'' in Dutch.

Some people theorize that Spanish definitions of the word ''Chamorro'' played a role in its being used to refer to the island's indigenous inhabitants. Not only is "Chamorro" a Spanish surname; in Spanish it also means "leg of pork", "beardless heat, "bald", "close-cropped", or "shorn/shaven/air or woolcut close to the surface". Around 1670, a Catholic missionary reported that men were sporting a style in which their heads were shaven, save for a "finger-length" amount of hair at the crown. This hairstyle has often been portrayed in modern-day depictions of early Chamorros, but the first European descriptions of the physical appearance of the Chamorro people in the 1520s and '30s report that both sexes had long black hair, which they wore down to their waists or even further. Another description, given about 50 years later, reported that the natives at that time were tying up their hair into one or two topknots.

Chamorro institutions on Guam advocate for the spelling ''CHamoru'', as reflected in the 2017 Guam public law 33-236. In 2018, the Commission on the CHamoru Language and the Teaching of the History and Culture of the Indigenous People of Guam announced ''CHamoru'' as the preferred standardized spelling of the language and people, as opposed to the conventional spelling ''Chamorro''.

Language

The Chamorro language is included in the Malayo-Polynesian subgroup of the Austronesian family. Because Guam was colonized by Spain for over 300 years, Chamorro has acquired many loanwords from Spanish. An example is how the traditional Chamorro number system was replaced by Spanish numbers.

Chamorro is often spoken in many homes, but this is becoming less common. However, a resurgence of interest in reviving the language has occurred, and all public schools on both Guam and the Northern Marianas are now required by law to teach the Chamorro language as part of the elementary-, middle-, and high-school curriculum.

The most spoken phrase in Chamorro is ''håfa adai'', a greeting which approximates "hello" in English.

History

Early Chamorros

The Chamorros are commonly believed to have arrived in the Marianas Islands from Southeast Asia ''circa'' 2,000 BC. They are most closely related to other Austronesian-speaking natives from the Philippines, eastern Indonesia (specifically in Maluku and Sulawesi), Taiwanese aborigines, and peoples of the Caroline Islands to the south (in particular the outer islands of the Federated States of Micronesia state of Yap). Recent advanced DNA testing conducted on the remains of ancient Chamorros showed that the lineage of both the Unai and the Latte periods originated during the Holocene Epoch in eastern Indonesia, most likely Sulawesi, with no direct prehistoric connection to the Philippines. They were expert seafarers and skilled craftspeople familiar with intricate weaving and detailed pottery-making. The latte stone, a megalithic rock pillar topped with a hemispherical capstone, was used by early Chamorros as foundation for buildings, and has since been appropriated as a national symbol.

Chamorro society was based on what sociologist Dr. Lawrence J. Cunningham termed the " matrilineal avuncuclan", one characteristic of which is that the of the female parent plays a more primary paternal role than biological male parent of a child.

Agriculture

Spanish colonial records show that Chamorro farmers planted seeds according to the phases of the moon. For example, farmers on Guam often plant tuber crops such as sweet potato and yams at full moon during low tide.

Culture

=Cosmogony and religion

=

According to early Chamorro legend, the world was created by a twin brother and sister, Puntan and Fu'uña. As he lay dying, Puntan instructed his sister Fu'uña to make his body into the ingredients of the universe. She used his eyes to create the Sun and Moon, his eyebrows to make rainbows, and most of the rest of his parts into various features of the Earth. Once her work was complete, she descended on an island called " Guåhan", and transformed herself into a giant rock. This rock split, and from it emerged all human beings. Some believe that this rock was once located at the site of a church in Agat, while others believe it is the phallic-shaped ''Laso de Fua'' located in Fouha Bay in Umatac.

Ancient Chamorros engaged in ancestor veneration, but did not practice a formal "religion" in the sense of worshiping deities. At least one account by Christoph Carl Fernberger in 1623 holds that human sacrifice was practiced to placate a "great fish". This claim may be related to a Chamorro legend about why the island of Guam is narrow in the middle. According to the legend, a gigantic fish was gradually eating away at the island from both sides. Although the ancient Chamorros supposedly had magical abilities, the huge creature eluded them. When the men were unsuccessful in hunting it down, the women used their hair to weave a net, which grew larger as they sang. The singing enchanted the fish, and lured it into the giant net.

=Castes and classes

=

Chamorro society was divided into two main castes, and continued to be so for well over a century after the Spanish first arrived. According to historical records provided by Europeans such as Father Charles Le Gobien, apparent racial differences existed between the subservient ''Manachang'' caste, and the higher ', the Manachang being described as shorter, darker-skinned, and physically less hardy than the Chamori. The Chamori caste was further subdivided into the upper-middle class ''Achoti''/''Acha'ot'' and the highest, the ruling ''Matua''/''Matao'' class. Achoti could gain status as Matua, and Matua could be reduced to Achoti, but Manachang were born and died as such and had no recourse to improve their station. Members of the Manachang and the Chamori were not permitted to intermingle. All three classes performed physical labor, but had specifically different duties. Le Gobien theorized that Chamorro society comprised the geographical convergence of peoples of different ethnic origins. This idea may be supportable by the evidence of linguistic characteristics of the Chamorro language and social customs.

=Clothing and beauty practices

=
Prior to Spanish contact, Chamorro boys and men wore no clothing and went about fully nude at all times. Chamorro girls went nude until around the age of eight to ten, at which point they began to wear a small genital covering made either of bark, one or more leaves, a piece of a turtle shell or in some cases matting. Both sexes at times wore hats of woven leaves to protect themselves from the sun.

Father Pierre Coomans wrote of the practice among Chamorro women of teeth blackening/dental lacquering (also a widespread custom in ancient maritime Southeast Asia, Japan, southeastern China, and parts of Indochina), which they considered beautiful as a distinction apart from animals. Fernberger wrote in his account of the Chamorros that “penis pins” were employed as a chastity measure for young males, a type of genital piercing similar to those employed by inhabitants of precolonial maritime Southeast Asia.

= Folklore

=

The Chamorro creation story revolves around two celestial siblings named Puntan and Fu'una. In time, this creation story underwent a series of modifications due to the complications in passing the story along from generation to generation. In this Chamorro creation story, Puntan and Fu'una create the world with their body parts and souls. Puntan's various body parts were turned into the land, his chest into the sky, his eyebrows into rainbows, and his eyes into the sun and moon. Fu’una having the ability to give life, brought the sun, soil, and waters to life, and with a final transformation, she turned into stone and gave birth to the Chamorro people. Evidence supporting this creation story can be seen through the names of the villages on Guam as they are named after body parts. Barrigada translates to flank, Tiyan translates to stomach, Hagatna translates to blood and Mongmong translates to a heartbeat.

Traditional beliefs among the Chamorros include tales of '' taotaomo'na'' and ''birak'', as well as the Spanish-introduced concepts of '' duendes'' and hauntings in places such as in Yona, other old buildings, schools, hotel elevators, and the Ma’ina bridge. Taotaomo'na are spirits of ancient Chamorros. Birak is a broader term that may refer not only to the undead, but also to demons or general elemental types. Taotaomona essentially translates to “people of early times,” referring to the ancestors of the Chamorro peoples. The Taotaomona is a supernatural ancestral spirit that Chamorros and some neighboring islanders from Rota and Saipan believe in. The Taotaomona possess a strength that far exceeds man and has the ability to cause sickness and death to those who offend them. The appearance of a Taotaomona can vary as they can be a female or male and can take an attractive form or a monstrous form.

Spanish rule

On March 6, 1521, Ferdinand Magellan and his men, after having crossed the Pacific Ocean, had encountered the first "indios" since leaving South America. Later Spanish visitors named the inhabitants "Chamurres", derived from a local term for the upper caste; this was then converted to "Chamorros", an old Spanish term for "bald", perhaps in reference to the local habit to shave.

Over the centuries, the Mariana Islands have been occupied by several foreign countries (Spain, Germany, Japan, United States), and present-day Chamorro society is almost entirely multiethnic, with the inhabitants of Luta/Rota being the least so. The Chamorros are primarily of Austronesian ancestry, but began to significantly interact with Spanish and Filipinos during the Spanish colonial era (1521–1898 AD). Primarily since the late 19th century onward, many Chamorros have intermarried with other Pacific Islanders, mainland Americans, Filipinos, Chinese, and Japanese.

During the Spanish colonial era, the Chamorro population was greatly reduced by the introduction of European diseases and changes in society during the Spanish-Chamorro Wars. The Spanish killed many Chamorro men and relocated most others to Guam, where they lived in several parishes to prevent rebellion. An estimated 100,000 Chamorros may have populated the Marianas when Europeans first settled in 1667. By 1800, they numbered under 1,000. Within the parishes, the Spanish eventually focused their efforts on converting the natives to Catholicism. Father Frances X. Hezel stated that Chamorros caught or reported engaging in pagan "sorcery" were publicly punished. Through this, they were given Spanish surnames through ''Catálogo Alfabético de Apellidos'' or Alphabetic Catalog of Surnames. Thus, a multiracially mixed Chamorro with European descent and a Spanish surname may not necessarily have Spanish blood, any more than Filipinos with Spanish surnames do.

During the Spanish–American War, the United States captured Guam on June 21, 1898. Under the Treaty of Paris, signed on December 10, 1898, Spain ceded Guam to the United States effective April 11, 1899. Guam is among the 17 nonself-governing territories listed by the United Nations.

World War II

Before World War II, five American jurisdictions were in the Pacific Ocean: Guam and Wake Island in Micronesia, American Samoa and Hawaii in Polynesia, and the Philippines in Southeast Asia. On December 8, 1941, hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor, Japanese forces from the Marianas launched an invasion of Guam. Chamorros from the Northern Marianas, who had been under Japanese rule for more than 20 years, were brought to Guam to assist the Japanese administration. This, combined with the harsh treatment of Chamorros during the two-and-a-half-year occupation, created a rift that would become the main reason Chamorros rejected the referendum on reunification approved by the Northern Marianas in the 1960s. During the occupation, Chamorros were subjected to forced labor, incarceration, torture, and execution. American forces recaptured the island on July 21, 1944; Liberation Day commemorates the victory.

After World War II, the Guam Organic Act of 1950 established Guam as an unincorporated organized territory of the United States, provided for the structure of the island's civilian government, and granted the people U.S. citizenship. The governor of Guam was federally appointed until 1968, when the Guam Elective Governor Act provided for the office's popular election. Since Guam is not a U.S. state, U.S. citizens residing on Guam are not allowed to vote for president and their congressional representative is a nonvoting member. They do, however, get to vote for party delegates in presidential primaries.

The increasing numbers of Chamorros, especially Chamorro youth, relocating to the U.S. mainland, has complicated both definition and preservation of Chamorro identity. On Guam, a Chamorro-rights movement has developed since the United States gained control of the island. Leaders of the movement seek to return ancestral lands to the Chamorro people, and attain self-determination.

Modern Chamorro culture

Chamorro culture has over the years acquired noticeable influences from Spanish, Mexican, American, Japanese, and Filipino cultures, as well as the presence of fellow Oceanic (mostly Micronesian) groups. Influence from the German era in the Northern Marianas is most visible in the form of certain given names and family surnames.

The prehistoric concept of ''inafa'maolek'' ("doing good for each other", often translated as interdependence) is a core value of traditional Chamorro culture. Respect for one's family, community, and the elderly (''man åmko) are major components, although this varies from person to person and family to family. The culture is now strongly influenced by American customs and values, largely because the Marianas archipelago ( partitioned into Guam and the CNMI) is currently possessed by the United States of America, as organized but unincorporated territories; in addition, most people of Chamorro descent now live outside of the Marianas in the United States. The American military has a major cultural influence among the Chamorro; enlistment rates are higher in the Marianas than in any other place in the USA. On Guam, the enlistment rate is around 14 people per 10,000; by contrast, the US state of Montana, which has the highest per capita enlistment, has a rate near half that, with about eight people per 10,000. (See the Guam page for more details about this topic.)

Cockfighting and cockfight-related gambling were introduced by the Spanish and have long been a significant pastime in Chamoru culture, especially among men. It is still popular among the members of older generations and with Filipino immigrants, who raise roosters for cockfighting purposes; however, mixed martial arts fighting competitions have grown in popularity as spectator sports, particularly among the members of more recent generations. Large-scale events are held throughout the year on Guam and Saipan, which feature local competitors and guest participants from abroad.

Chamorro life has long centered on one's matriarchal clan. The concept of a "clan" stemming from a common female ancestor is still observed. Large extended families remain central to life in the Marianas.

Diabetes and heart disease have become increasingly common among the indigenous population, as well as among nonindigenous Oceanic people living in the Marianas, particularly the Carolinian Refaluwasch.

Traditional healers called ''suruhånu'' (or ''suruhåna'' for women) are still greatly respected for their knowledge of herbal treatments and spirits.

Religion

Most Chamorros are Roman Catholic and few in the Marianas still maintain some customs and beliefs from the time before the first European conquests; some residents of the Marianas will still ask permission from ancestral spirits before entering parts of jungles.

Among the 56 states and territories of the United States, the Mariana Islands have the highest rate of religious self-identification, with a combined percentage of only 1.75% of the population (Guam at 2.5% and the CNMI at just 1%) not claiming membership in or affiliation with a particular religion.

Cuisine

Chamorro cuisine is influenced by various cultures. Examples of popular foods of foreign origin include various types of sweet or savory '' empanada'', originally introduced by Spain, and '' pancit'', a noodle dish from the Philippines.

Archeological evidence from islands in the Marianas reveals that rice was cultivated there since prehistory. Red rice made with ''achoti'' is a distinct staple food that strongly identifies Chamorro cuisine among the many dishes of fellow Pacific Island cultures. It is commonly served for special events, such as parties (''gupot'' or "fiestas"), '' nobenas'', and occasions such as a high-school or college graduations. The condiment '' fina'denne''' accompanies most meals. Fruits such as '' lemmai, mangga, niyok'', and'' bilimbines ''are consumed in various local recipes. In the Marianas, Korean, Chinese, Japanese, and American cuisine are also commonly available. Local cookies are known as ''guyuria''.

Locally distinct foods include '' kelaguen'', a dish in which meat is denatured in whole or in part by citric acid rather than heat; ''tinaktak'', a meat dish made with coconut milk; and ''kå'du fanihi'' ( flying fox/ fruit bat soup). Fruit bats and local birds have become scarce in modern times primarily due to the World War II-era introduction of the brown tree snake, which decimated the populations of local birds and threatens the'' fanihi'' (fruit bat) population, as well. Illegal hunting of fruit bats also threatens existing populations.

Spam and other canned meats were introduced to the islands after World War II, leading to a dietary shift.

Diaspora in the United States

According to the 2010 census, 148,220 Chamorros are living in the United States, mostly from Guam, but also from the Northern Marianas and Saipan.The Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander Population: 2010 Census, 2010 Census Briefs, United States Bureau of the Census, May 2012
''www.census.gov''

The early Chamorros who migrated to the USA were Guamanians who moved in the first decade of the 20th century. In the following decades, small groups of Guamanians emigrated to Hawaii and the Western United States, where they worked as farmers. Page 524. The population of Guam got the American citizenship in 1929. Chapter: ''Pacific Islander and Pacific Islander Americans, 1940-present'', written by Matthew Kester. Page 1177. So, after the end of World War II, many more Guamanians emigrated to the US. Most of them were in the military or married with military people.

In 1950, the population of Guam gained the full American citizenship, Page 22. which favoured Guamanian migration to the US. So, the first major Guamanian migration emerged and more of 160 Guamanians emigrated to the US in the '50s. Many of them moved to California. Page 835. In 1952, Guamanian immigrants founded their first organization in US, the Guam Territorial Society (later renamed as the Guam Society of America), in Washington, D.C., where many worked for the Department of Defense and developing military operations.

In the 1960s, hundreds of Guamanians emigrated to the United States, when the largest numbers emigrated to this country. Most of them were fleeing the Korean War and Typhoon Karen. Chapter: Pacific Islanders in the U.S., written by Faye Untalan Muñoz. Page 43.

In the '70s, another wave of Guamanians arrived in the US. In 1986, the US acquired the Northern Marianas Islands,"Proclamation 5564—United States Relations With the Northern Mariana Islands, Micronesia, and the Marshall Islands"
The American Presidency Project. Retrieved September 1, 2019. which favoured migration from islands to the US.

As of 2020, Pierce County, Washington, has the largest Chamorro population with 4,931 persons or 0.62% of the total population.

Notable Chamorros

* Theresa H. Arriola, a cultural anthropologist from the Northern Mariana Islands
* Zach Banner (born 1993), American NFL football offensive tackle for the Pittsburgh Steelers
* Manny Crisostomo (born 1958), Chamorro Pulitzer Prize winner
* Joe Duarte (born 1983), mixed martial artist
* Peter Gumataotao, first Chamorro two-star flag officer in the United States military
* Siobhon McManus, teacher & activist
* Susan Pangelinan, Chamorro-American member of the United States Air Force
* Frank Camacho, martial artist
* Jon Tuck, martial artist
* Zeta Cruz, (born 2001), mixed Chamorro Model and activist

See also

* History of Guam
* History of Oceania
* History of the Pacific Islands
* Native Hawaiians

References

External links

Chamorro census information
from the Secretariat of the Pacific Community

Chamorro, Joan plus Andrea Motis play / sing on the digital music album of the Sant Andreu Jazz Band in Barcelona, Spain

MyChamorroHeritage.com
Another resource for Chamorros and those interested in the Chamorro people and culture. Useful for Chamorros interested in genealogy.

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Chamorro people
Chamorro
Indigenous peoples of Micronesia
Indigenous peoples in the United States
Micronesian American