GA'PAN OR CAMEL ROCK

We all know it as Camel Rock.

It only looks (vaguely) like a camel if you look at it from a certain angle. Otherwise, it just looks like a flat rock, with jagged edges. lying on the reef.

It was only called Camel Rock during American times. Our own people call it GA'PAN and sometimes GA'PANG. Some might call it Åcho' Ga'pan (Ga'pan Rock) and others might call it Isletan Ga'pan (Ga'pan Islet, or very small island).

Since the name  "Camel Rock" has become so common, there might be people who want to call it Åcho' Kameyo which is "Camel Rock" in Chamorro, but Ga'pan is the actual Chamorro name.

I wasn't sure about the accurate pronunciation of Ga'pan till recently. The maps and documents just spell it Gapan and sometimes Gapang, but is there a glota in the way it is pronounced but just doesn't show in the old spelling? Is one A really an Å, which sounds different, like the two vowels in HÅGAT? Since the maps don't indicate any of these, the best thing is to hear the name pronounced by older residents of the area.  It took me some time, but I found someone very active in the community, who knows fishermen who know the area, and he's always heard the fishermen and man åmko' (elders) say Ga'pan, with the glota and the two As being the same kind of A that sounds like the A in "cat" and not like the A in "far."

OLD MAPS (1819 and 1900) SHOWING GA'PAN

When was the last time you say a camel on Guam? We don't have them. So this American writer in 1959 wondered how Chamorros came up with the idea to name the rock after an animal they had never seen.

The writer assumes too much. First, she assumes the Chamorro people named it Camel Rock. They didn't. They already had a name for it - Ga'pan.

Second, she assumes Chamorros never saw camels.

We have no camels in the Marianas, but many Chamorros in the old days would have had some idea about them and how they looked because camels are often featured among the different statues in the belén or nativity scene. Not every Chamorro family had belén in their homes in the old days, but even those who didn't have them would have seen camel statues in those families that did have them or even in pictures. At the very least, a priest could have explained what a camel was, since camels are part of the Christmas story, especially with the Three Kings which Chamorros celebrated joyfully.

Still, our people did not call it Camel Rock, nor did they think of camels when they looked at the rock. It was always Ga'pan or Ga'pang. Calling it Camel Rock was an American idea.

THE LEGEND(S)

If you wanted to know how the rock got there in the first place, I would reply by asking "Which legend do you want to hear?"

There is more than one legend, and they differ a lot but also contain a few details common to all versions of the story.

Let me start with the oldest one I have found so far.

FROM 1927

I'll summarize the legend as published in the Guam Recorder in 1927. No author and no source is stated. 

The people of Hagåtña were tired of being raided or invaded by warriors of other villages, who would attack Hagåtña sailing their canoes through the opening in the Hagåtña reef.

Maps as old as 1819 and during the war show the break in the reef in front of Hagåtña. Today, thanks to dredging by man and machine, the channel has been deepened and widened.

TODAY'S BREAK AND CHANNEL

So the chiefly class of Hagåtña decided that everybody, young and old, would solve the problem by collecting rocks and dumping them at the break in the reef to seal it up. Enemy canoes would no longer be able to come in, so they thought.

The problem was the rocks they collected and dumped were small, so when the tide changed, the rocks were washed out to sea. The break in the channel remained open.

Obviously they realized they needed a bigger rock, one big enough that the flow of water when the tide changed couldn't move. But they didn't know of any rock big enough in the Hagåtña area. But the maga'låhe (chief) of Orote was a friend of the maga'låhe of Hagåtña and said they could find one in Orote. So, off some men of Hagåtña went in their canoes to Orote, where they found a nice big rock and loaded it onto one of their canoes and headed back to Hagåtña.

Now the problem was Asan. The people of Asan had a grudge against the people of Hagåtña who raided their village from time to time. When the maga'låhe and people of Asan saw the Hagåtña canoes passing by and one loaded with a huge rock, they knew what it was for and that it would prevent them from attacking Hagåtña by sea. The time to act was now. So the Asan warriors got in their canoes and attacked the Hagåtña canoes, whose men hadn't planned to fight when they made their voyage to Orote. Lacking the proper weapons for battle, the Hagåtña men easily succumbed to the Asan attack.

The Asan warriors decided to break up the Hagåtña canoe just enough so that the big rock it was carrying would submerge it. And so it happened, and all that was left on the reef outside Asan Point was the rock from Orote the men of Hagåtña intended to bring to their village.

MR. JUSTO CHARGUALAF, BORN 1874

Justo Quitugua Chargualaf was a life-long Asan resident, who was interviewed in 1961 at the age of 86 years. That means he could have heard the legend of Ga'pan as a child in the 1880s, which would predate the 1927 Guam Recorder article. But, since we don't know how old Justo was when he heard the story about Ga'pan, I'll have to place him after the Guam Recorder story to be safe.

In his version, it was the people of Piti and Hagåtña who were at odds. In Spanish times, the people of Piti actually lived in Tepungan, a little closer to Asan. It was a taotaomo'na of Piti (or Tepungan) who decided to block the Hagåtña channel with a big rock so he got one from Apapa' or Cabras Island. He did it at night, as taotaomo'na generally are not active during the day. But, before he could reach Hagåtña with the big rock, the sun started to rise so he threw the rock down on the reef outside Asan Point.

THE TWINKLING STAR VERSION

In another version, seen in print more recently, two boys, only four years old, from the Aguada clan, were sent to get the rock from Orote for the same purpose, of sealing the Hagåtña channel to prevent enemy attack. The detail that the two boys were only four years old means that Chamorros were so strong back then that even two children that young could fetch a huge rock. Their clan had a rule never to be out past a certain time at night. So, on their way back to Hagåtña, they saw a twinkling star which they mistakenly believed meant that the sun was soon to rise and they would break their curfew. So they dropped the huge rock on the reef at Asan Point to hurry back home in time.

On account of them being tricked by the twinkling star, the story is sometimes called Dinagi Laolao, which means "The Lie of Quivering," meaning the quivering or twinkling star.

GÅDAO VERSION

In yet another version, the two men who fetched the rock were sons of Chief Gådao of Inalåhan. He sent them for the same mission, to seal up Hagåtña's opening in the reef. He told them to get the job done and return home before sunrise. They saw the twinkling star and, fearing sunrise, ditched the rock on the reef at Asan Point and beat a hasty return to Inalåhan.

There are a few more versions, some of them even giving the names of the two boys, or the name of their father. 

But, as you can see, the versions are wildly different in many ways, but let's see how all versions say the same thing in some respects.

CONSISTENT ELEMENTS

1. The mission was to seal up the break in the reef at Hagåtña.

2. That would be accomplished by taking a big rock from somewhere else to Hagåtña to put in the break and seal it up.

3. The mission was not successful and the rock was dropped on the reef outside Asan Point.

Because the job was not accomplished, some people say that ga'pan means "unfinished work," but I cannot substantiate that from older dictionaries. The word doesn't appear even in the 1865 Chamorro dictionary.

So these three points are the heart of the story that appear in all the versions. But then the different versions of the legend add to the skeleton of the story in the different ways you see here. Who knows what newspaper article or book of legends in the future will add even more new elements to the story. And of course there may be old versions of the legend not passed down to us, or hidden somewhere on a piece of paper at MARC.

Ga'pan is a better name for this rock because it doesn't always look like a camel, but it always looks like a Ga'pan to me.

WHY THE CHICKEN SCRATCHES THE GROUND

Why do chickens scratch the ground so much? Well, common sense tells you the chicken is scrounging for food. But here's a more colorful explanation, thanks to our mañaina a long time ago.

Mamaisen i patgon gi as tatå-ña biho,
(The child asked his grandfather,)

"Tåta, håfa na sesso de ha ka'guas i edda' i mannok?"
("Father, why does the chicken frequently scratch the dirt?")

Manoppe i amko' taiguine.
(The old man answered this way.)

"Ginen guaha låncho åpmam na tiempo tåtte.
("There was a ranch a long time ago.)

Entre todo i man gå'ga' ni man gaige guihe na låncho,
(Among all the animals that were at that ranch,)

gof umabbok un babui yan un månnok.
(a pig and a chicken were great friends.)

Ilek-ña i babui un dia gi mannok,
(The pig said one day to the chicken,)

'Pot i sen umaguaiya-ta, chule' este na aniyo
('Because of our loving each other much, take this ring)

kuentan inagofli'e'-ta.'
(as a token of our friendship.)

Sen magof i mannok ha chåhlao i aniyo
(The chicken was very happy to accept the ring)

ya ha pega gi agapa' na patås-ña.
(and he put it on his right foot.)

Un åño despues, må'pos i babui para otro na tåno'
(One year later, the pig left for another land)

ya åntes de ha dingu i lancho, ha sangåne i mannok,
(and before he left the ranch, he told the chicken,)

'Nangga yo' asta ke måtto yo' tåtte.'
('Wait for me till I come back.')

Lao humåhnanao i babui ti ha bira gue' tåtte.
(But it went on that the pig didn't return back.)

Pine'lo-ña i mannok na ni ngai'an ta'lo
(The chicken thought that never again)

para u ali'e' yan i babui.
(would he and the pig see each other.)

Un oga'an, makmåta i mannok ya ti ha sodda' i aniyo.
(One morning, the chicken awoke and didn't find the ring.)

Sige de ha espia, lao ti siña ha sodda'.
(He kept looking, but couldn't find it.)

Pot fin, måtto tåtte i babui gi lancho ya ha faisen i mannok,
(At last, the pig returned to the ranch and asked the chicken,)

'Mångge i aniyo ni hu nå'e hao?'
('Where is the ring I gave you?')

Tumekkon i mannok gi minamamahlao-ña ya ilek-ña,
(The chicken lowered his head in his shame and said,)

'Un oga'an makmåta yo' ya ti hu sodda'.
('One morning I awoke and didn't find it.)

Humåhnanao ha' ti hu sodda' i aniyo asta på'go.'
(It went on that I didn't find the ring till now.')

Lalålo' i babui ya ilek-ña,
(The pig got angry and said,)

'Pot i un na' falingo i hu nå'e hao na aniyo,
('Because you lost the ring I gave you,)

hu matdisi todo i mannok siha desde på'go para mo'na.
(I curse all the chickens from now on.)

Asta i uttimon i tano', todo i mannok siha
(Till the end of the world, all the chickens)

siempre ma ka'guas i edda' asta ke ma sodda' i aniyo.'
(shall surely scratch the dirt till the ring is found.')

I leksion ni para ta eyak guine na fåbula : Cha'-mo muna' falilingo i ma na'i-mo.
(The moral we are to learn from this legend : Don't dare lose what is given to you.)

I CHATTAO NA DUEÑO

This is a story with a moral, a lesson in right behavior. The moral of this story is : Be generous. God punishes the selfish and takes away what they had.

Ginen guaha taotao ni gai iyo dångkulo yan lokka' na trongkon mångga.

(There was once a man who owned a large and tall mango tree.)

Fuera de i dinangkulo-ña yan linekkå'-ña, sen meppa' na trongkon mångga.

(Besides its size and height, the mango tree was very fruitful.)

Kada såkkan sen bula tinekchå'-ña mångga, asta ke ini'ingak påpa' i ramås-ña

(Every year it had a lot of mango, till its branches bent down)

kulan mohon para u pacha i edda'.

(as if to touch the ground.)

Mamopoddong i mångga yan meggai na fruta man låstima sa' ti man ma hokka' 

(The mangoes would fall and much fruit was wasted because they wouldn't be picked up)

ya ti man ma kånno'.

(and wouldn't be eaten.)

Un dia, maloffan un sottero gi me'nan este na trongko ya ha repåra

(One day, a young man passed in front of this tree and noticed)

na man låstima i mångga ni esta man lamas gi hilo' odda' sa' ti man ma hohokka'.

(that the mangoes were wasted as they ripened on the ground because they weren't picked up.)

Umessalao para u yåma i dueño ni pine'lo-ña na eståba gi halom guma'

(He yelled to call the owner whom he supposed was inside the house)

lao ti humuyung i dueño.

(but the owner didn't come out.)

Entonses, ha tutuhon i sottero måmfe' mångga ginen i mas manakpapa'

(Then, the young man began to pick mangoes from the lowest)

na råmas ni man libiåno ma tife'.

(branches which were easy to pick.)

Gigon ha tutuhon måmfe', humuyung i dueño ginen i gima'

(When he started to pick, the owner came out of the house)

ya ha tutuhon lumalåtde i sottero ya ha dulalak.

(and started to scold the young man and chase him away.)

Må'pos i sottero sin håfa na mångga ya asta ke måkpo' i tiempon mångga,

(The young man left with no mangoes at all and till mango season was over,)

i dueño ti ha sedi ni håyeye para u fånfe' mångga ginen i trongko-ña,

(the owner didn't allow anyone to pick mangoes from his tree)

achok ha' meppa' ya man lålåstima i mångga.

(even though it was abundant and the mangoes were being wasted.)

Gi sigiente na såkkan, annai esta måtto i tiempo ni para u fanflores i

(The following year, when it came time for mango trees to flower,)

trongkon mångga, ma repåra nu i taotao na i mamalo na trongkon mångga

(people noticed that the other mango trees)

manfloflores, lao i trongkon mångga ni iyon i chattao na dueño tåya'

(were flowering, but the mango tree of the stingy owner)

flores-ña. Annai esta bula tinekcha'-ñiha i mamalo na trongkon mångga,

(had no flowers. When the other mango trees had a lot of fruit,)

ayo na trongko ni iyon i chattao na taotao, sen taya' tinekchå'-ña mångga.

(that tree owned by the stingy man was really lacking mango fruit.)

Mina' i chinattao-ña i dueño na si Yu'us ha kastiga ayo na taotao 

(It was due to his selfishness that God punished that man)

ya ti ha na' gai tinekcha' i trongko-ña.

(and didn't make his tree bear fruit.)

I MAGÅHET NA GUINAIYA

Kao manhongge hao gi magåhet na guinaiya?
(Do you believe in true love?)

Eståba dos na asagua ni sen umaguaiya i dos.
(There were two spouses who really loved each other.)

Un dia, ilek-ña i lahe gi asaguå-ña, "Kerida, desde ke umassagua hit na dos,
(One day, the husband said to his wife, "Sweetheart, ever since the two of us got married,

tåya' ni un biåhe na ti humihita na dos maigo'.
(there was not even one time that we didn't sleep together.)

Promete yo' na masea håye dumingo este na tåno' fine'na,
(Promise me that whoever leaves this earth first,)

siempre ma håfot i uttimo måtai gi mismo naftån-ña i fine'na."
(the last to die will surely be buried in the same grave as the first.")

Ya taiguennao kontråtan-ñiha i dos.
(And that was how the two agreed.)

Måtai i lahe fine'na, ya para bente åños lumuluto i palao'an ha'åne yan puenge.
(The husband died first, and for twenty years the wife wore black day and night.)

Ti un li'e' i biuda solo gi halom guma'yu'us yan gi propio gumå'-ña.
(You wouldn't see the widow except inside the church and in her own house.)

Taiguennao tinaddong-ña i piniten i bumiudå-ña.
(That was how deep the pain was of her widowhood.)

En fin, kontodo i biuda måtai yan taimano ha' i kontråtan-ñiha i dos,
(Finally, the widow also died and as the two had agreed,)

ma guåddok i naftan i lahe pot para u ma håfot i palao'an.
(they dug up the grave of the husband in order to bury the wife.)

Annai måtto gi ataut i lahe, ma baba i ataut, ha estira i kanai-ña
(When they reached the husband's coffin, the coffin opened, the dead man )

i matai na låhe ni puro' ha' to'lang
(stretched out his bony hand)

ya ha go'te i kanai i matai na asaguå-ña.
(and grasped the hand of his dead wife.)

FÅBULAN I DOS METGOT

A common theme in many old Chamorro stories is extraordinary strength in exceptional people and even in children.

Sesso ha hungok i metgot kåttan na guaha metgot gi san lichan.
(A strong man from the north* often heard that there was a strong man in the southern* side.)

Humånao gi galaide-ña ya annai måtto Inalåhan ha sodda' gi halom liyang
(He went in his canoe and when he came to Inalåhan gi found inside a cave)

fotsudo na låhe.
(a muscular man.)

Mamaisen, "Kao gaige guine i ma sångan na guiya mås metgot gi san lichan?"
(He asked, "Is the one they say is strongest in the south here?"

Manoppe i taotao, "Hunggan lao mamaigo' esta."
(The man answered, "Yes, but he is already sleeping."

"Lao maila' ya bai na' lågo i na' amotsan talo'åne para hita na dos."
"But come and I'll make lunch for the two of us.")

Ya konfotme i metgot kåttan.
(The strong man from the north agreed.)

I taotao liyang ha goppe i mås lokka' na trongkon niyok ya måmfe' månha.
(The man in the cave jumped the tallest coconut tree and picked young coconuts.)

Gigon tumunok ha fugue gi kanai-ña ha' nu i chigo' månha ya ha na' gimen i metgot kåttan.
(As soon as he came down he squeezed in his own hands the juice of the young coconut and made the strong man from the north drink.)

Entre guiya ha' ilek-ña i metgot kåttan, "Seguro na guiya este i lahen i metgot luchan.
(The strong man from the north said to himself, "Surely this is the son of the strong man from the south.)

Yanggen taiguine minetgot-ña i lahe, kuånto mås i minetgot-ña i tata?
(If this is the son's strength, how much more the father's strength?)

Gigon makmåta si tatå-ña, siempre ha ñukot i agagå'-ho."
(As soon as his father wakes up, he will surely choke my neck.")

Pues chaddek ha dingo Inalåhan ya ha bira gue' tåtte para i tano'-ña.
(So he quickly left Inalåhan and returned to his own place.)

Ti ha tungo' na i taotao ni ha sodda' gi halom liyang era et mismo metgot luchan.
(He didn't know that the person he found in the cave was the very strong man of the south.)

Mandagi i metgot luchan ya ha fa' si lahi-ña gue'.
(The strong man of the south lied and made himself out to be his son.)


* Kåttan/Luchan. In Chamorro, there really is no north, south, east and west in the Western sense; what we call "cardinal points" or "cardinal directions." There is, in Chamorro, "towards the sea" (lågo), "away from the sea" (haya), to the left of the sea (luchan) and to the right of the sea (kåttan).

ESTORIAN I ÑAMO

Sen umaguaiya i un låhe yan i nobiå-ña ya umassagua i dos.
(A man and his girlfriend were so in love and they got married.)

Kada dia, ma umenta i minagof-ñiha pot i umagofli'e' i dos.
(Each day, their happiness increased because of their mutual love.)

Lao måtto i pininite annai gotpe ha' måtai i palao'an.
(But sorrow came when the woman suddenly died.)

Ti siña ma konsuela i lahe ni piniti-ña.
(You couldn't console the man of his pain.)

Duro gue' tumånges, ha'åne yan puenge.
(He cried and cried, day and night.)

En fin, ha konne' i matai na asaguå-ña
(In the end, he took his dead wife)

para u ma håfot gi tasi.
(to be buried in the sea.)

Mientras humahånao gi tasi gi halom boti-ña,
(While he went to the sea in his boat,)

måtto i taotaomo'na ya ha sangåne i lahe,
(the spirit of an ancestor came and told the man,)

"Siña hu na' lå'la' ta'lo i asaguå-mo,
("I can bring your wife back to life again,)

lao hu nesesita atfilet piao."
(but I need a bamboo pin.")

I lahe ha nå'e i taotaomo'na nu i atfilet piao
(The man gave the spirit a bamboo pin)

ya i taotaomo'na ha dulok i damagås-ña i lahe
(and the spirit pricked the thumb of the man)

ya ha na' tuhu i hagå'-ña gi labios-ña i palao'an
(and let his blood drip onto the lips of the lady)

ya magåhet na lumå'la' ta'lo i palao'an!
(and truly the lady came back to life again!)

Ma bira siha tåtte gi tano' ya todo maolek.
(They went back to land and all was well.)

Lao un dia, ha sodda' i lahe na guaha atungo'-ña otro na låhe i asaguå-na.
(But, one day, the man saw that his wife had another male friend.)

Gi lalalo'-ña, ha puno' ma se'se' i asaguå-ña annai eståba na umo'omak gi saddok,
(In his anger, he stabbed his wife to death while she bathed in the river,)

ya i haga' i palao'an ni ma chuda' gi saddok mama' chåda' ñåmo.
(and the blood that spread through the river became the eggs of mosquitoes.)

Ennao mina' man man å'aka' i ñamo siha.
(That is why mosquitoes bite.)

Ma espipia nahong na kantida håga' kosa ke u lå'la' ta'lo i palao'an.
(They are looking for a sufficient amount of blood to bring the lady back to life again.)

ESTORIAN REINHOLD MANGLOÑA

Street scene in Luta during Japanese times

Reinhold Atalig Mangloña, as his first name suggests, was born in Luta (Rota) when there was still a German priest there. He was baptized Reinhold, a German name, but Chamorros also Hispanicized it to Rainaldo.

But the Japanese had just come to the Northern Marianas and the Japanese language and culture were about to influence the Chamorros of Luta and Saipan in a very big way.

Reinhold went to school and learned the following story from his Japanese teacher, a woman. It was shared with me by his son Richie Mangloña and the text is Richie's own spelling and wording. The English translation is mine.

The moral of the story : respect the elderly as sources of wisdom.

Gi tiempon antigo giya Hapon, eståba ti man ma gef polu' i manåmko'-ñiha

(In ancient times in Japan, they did not really consider their elderly)

komu man gai båli osino man malåte'.

(as having any worth or else as being intelligent.)

I manaotao Hapones sesso man ma fa'tinåsi kuåtto i manåmko'-ñiha

(Japanese people often made rooms for their elderly)

gi santåtten guma' pat gi la chågu' ginen i gima'-ñiha

(in the rear of the house or farther away from their houses)

putno u fan ma atendin maolek sa' ma po'lu na esta meggai-ña

(so as not to attend to them well because they considered that they were more)

estotbun-ñiñiha ki todu i prubechu.

(of a bother rather than a benefit.)

Pues guaha un familia mañåsaga Hokkaido'.

(So there was a family living in Hokkaido.)

I tåta as Mitsuro, i nåna as Mikki, i hagan-ñiha as Eiko yan si nånan-biha as Mio.

(Mitsuro was the father, Mikki the mother, Eiko their daughter and Mio the grandmother.)

Ma na' såsaga si nånan-biha gi dikiki' na kuåtto gi tatten-guma'.

(They housed grandmother in a small room behind the house.)

Un dia sigi umesalao i taotao i Impiradot na para u guaha kumpitensia

(One day the Emperor's people kept shouting that there was to be a contest)

para todu i famagu'on eskuela ya i håyi gumånna

(for all the school children and whoever won)

para u ma nå'i dångkulu na premiun salåpe'!

(would be given a large prize of money!)

Magahet si Mitsuro sumen popble ya ha tåtanga na puedde u gånna

(Truly Mitsuro was very poor and he wished that perhaps)

i hagå-ña i premiu komu ha na' saonao gi kumpitensia!

(his daughter would win the prize if he made her participate in the contest!)

Infin humalom i påtgon Mitsuro gi kumpitensia ya man ma na'i hafa para u ma cho'gue.

(At last Mitsuro's child entered the contest and they were given what they were to do.)

I kuestion nai man ma presenta i famagu'on ilek-ña, "Haftaimanu nai siña

(The question which was presented to the children said, "How can

en na'halom i hilun man laksi gi esti i gai maddok na alamli nai

(you put the sewing thread into the hole of this wire which)

ma chaflilik gi todu direksion ya para un na'huyong gi otro banda?"

(twists in all directions so that you make it come out on the other side?")

Ha chagi i påtgon todu i tiningo'-ña lao ti siña ha na' adotgan

(The child tried with all her knowledge but could not run through)

i hilu ginen i un måddok esta i otro.

(the thread from one hole to the other.)

Ni si Mitsuro yan i asagua-ña ti ma tungo' taimanu para u ma cho'gue este na chagi.

(Not even Mitsura and his wife knew how to do this attempt.)

Esta ma po'lu na imposipble esti para u ma cho'gue ya man triste i familia

(They already figured that this was impossible to do and the family was sad)

sa' ma hasso na ti siña ma gånna i premiu.

(because they thought that they couldn't win the prize.)

Pues annai man matata'chong gi kusina mañochocho un oga'an, ha lipåra si Eiko

(So when they sat down eating in the kitchen one morning, Eiko noticed)

na man guaguasan si nånan biha gi hiyong i kuatto-ña gi lachago' na distansia.

(that grandmother was trimming outside her room at a far distance.)

Ilek-ña, "Nangga ya bai faisen si nanan-biha kao ha tungo' taimanu nai siña

(She said, "Wait and I will ask grandmother if she knows how it is possible)

ta na' adotgan esti i hilu guini na alamli".

(for us to push the thread through the wire.")

Man oppe ha' si Mitsuro, "Esta ennao i biha maleffa, hafa gue' ennao tiningo'-ña!".

(Mitsuro answered, "The old lady already forgot that, what does she know about that!")

Ti man osgi si Eiko, ha bisita guato si bihå-ña ya ha faisen. Ilek-ña si Mio, 

(Eiko didn't obey, she visited her grandmother and asked her. Mio said,)

"Ai iha na linibiåno ennao i finaisesen-mu. Fan aligao oddot agaga' ya

("Oh daughter what you are asking is so easy. Look for red ants and)

un godde i tataotao-ña nai hilun man laksi.

(tie its body with the sewing thread.)

Na' hålom gi halom i måddok pues po'luyi asukat i otro banda

(Put it through the hole then put sugar for it on the other side)

sa' siempre ha tatiyi i pao asukat ya humuyong gi otro bånda!"

(because for sure it will follow the smell of sugar and go out the other side!")

Ha cho'gue si Eiko i tinago' i biha ya magahet macho'cho'!

(Eiko did grandmother's instruction and it truly worked!)

Ha håla magahet i oddot i hilu ginen i un båndan i alamli esta i otro banda!

(The ant really pulled the thread from one side of the wire to the other side!)

Sumen magof si Eiko!

(Eiko was really happy!)

Måtto i ha'ane para u ma presenta i famagu'on håfa ineppen-ñiha guato gi Impiradot!

(The day came for the children to present their answer to the Emperor!)

Meggai chumagi man man na'i ineppe lao ti kumfotmi i Imperadot.

(Many tried to give an answer but the Emperor didn't agree.)

Annai måtto tarea-ña si Eiko, ha fa'nu'i i Imperadot taimanu ma cho'gue-ña.

(When it came to Eiko's turn, she showed the Emperor how it is done.)

Mampos manman i Imperadot ya ha faisen i påtgon.,

(The Emperor was really amazed and asked the child,)

"Kao hagu ha' esti humasso para un cho'gue pat ma ayuda hao?"

("Was it only you who thought of doing this or were you helped?")

Ti yaña si Eiko mandagi pues ilek-ña, "Ahe', si bihå-hu yu' fuma'nå'gue!".

(Eiko didn't like to lie so she said, "No, my grandmother taught me!")

Annai ha tungo' i Imperadot na ayu i un biha sumåtba i finaisen-ña na kuestion,

(When the Emperor knew that it was one old lady who solved the question he asked,)

ha rialisa na lachi eyu na hinengge i para u fan ma chachanda i manåmko'!

(he realized that it was wrong thinking to be rejecting the elderly!)

Ginen eyu na tiempo, ha otdin na debi todu i manåmko' Hapon

(From that time, he ordered that all the elderly of Japan)

ufan ma atiendin maolek ya u fan ma setbi komu siha kumåkatga i ancho na kinimprendi.

(were to be attended to and served well as being the ones who carried broad understanding.)

Magof si Eiko' annai man siha yan si Nånan-biha ta'lo gi halom guma'

(Eiko was happy when she was together again with grandmother in the house)

ya kada dia ha atendi komu guiya i tesorun i familia!

(and she took care of her as being the treasure of the family!)

Reinhold Atalig Mangloña

1917 ~ 2002

NOTE

Hapon/Hapones are the older Chamorro words for "Japan" and "Japanese," borrowed from Spanish. More recently, especially among Chamorros from Guam, American influence has brought into the language the word Chapanis for "Japanese."

THE FORGOTTEN TAOTAOMO'NA

For any years I had read about how some taotaomo'na (manifestations of the ancient spirits) appeared with gaping holes on the sides of their torso, but only recently did I come across a pre-war story giving one of them a name.

Masongsong Kalaguåk-ña.

Apparently, in pre-war days, everyone knew him by that name.

Songsong can mean "village" but it can also mean "to stuff, to fill in a hole."

Kalaguak means the left and right sides of the torso, from the rib cage down to the waist.

So Masongsong Kalaguåk-ña means "stuffed his side."

According to the description, this taotaomo'na had a gaping hole on his side and he stuffed it with banana leaves or coconut husks. Then he covered the entire hole with a banana leaf.

All the children of Guam knew him by name because mothers and grandmothers would warn them that Masongsong Kalaguåk-ña went after misbehaving kids and put them in his hole and covered the hole with the banana leaf and went back to the jungle with the child.

Perhaps some families kept the memory of his name but, after asking around, no one I asked had ever heard of the name Masongsong Kalaguåk-ña. More people had heard that some taotaomo'na had holes on their sides, stuffed with leaves. Fewer people told me they knew about one who stole bad children by putting them in the hole. But no one that I talked to knew his name.

WHITE LADY OF LUTA

Luta (Rota) has its own version of the White Lady story. Here it is, written by Rich Mangloña. I have kept it as he wrote it, using his orthography. The English translation is mine.

Un tiempo gi manmaloffan, gi un songsong gi islan Luta,

(One time in the past, in a village on the island of Luta)

guaha un sen å'paka' yan bunita na påtgon palao'an mafañågu.

(there was born a very white and beautiful infant girl.)

Mafa'na'an Sosambra nai mañaina-ña.

(She was named Sosambra by her parents.)

Sigi mo'na i tiempo ya mientras mås gai idåt, mås umanåkko' i gapotilu-ña

(As time went on and as she grew older, her hair became longer)

ya mås atanon yan freska fasu-ña.

(and she became more attractive and her face more pleasing.)

Fuera ki i bunita-ña, kalålang yan suåbe lokkue' kumånta kulan un chuchurikan ånde'!

(Besides her beauty, she sang so gracefully like a kalålang bird or showy chuchurika.)

Pues annai echu sumottera, tai parehu buninita-ña giya Luta

(So when she became a young maiden, her beauty was without equal in Luta)

ya taya' na palao'an gi sengsong ti umeggu' yangin mamamaila'

(and not a single woman in the village wouldn't be jealous when she would come)

sa' ma lipåra na i man asagua yan nobiun-ñiha man gof ande'

(because they noticed that their husbands and boyfriends became show-offs)

yangin umuriya este na å'paka' hobensita!

(when this white young lady came around.)

Kada dia ma tågo' si Sosambra as nanå-ña para u hånao ya u krusa i sengsong

(Every day Sosambra was sent by her mother to and go and cross the village)

ya u fan lupok gi tupu' hånom giya Senhanom gi puntan songsong.

(to fetch water from the water well at Senhanom at the end of the village.)

Kada maloffan gi me'nan guma' siha, sigi kumånta mo'na ya i bos-ña tatfoi i kariñosa-ña,

(Every time she passed in front of the houses, she kept singing on and such was the sweetness of her voice)

ni i ga'lågu tampoku ti u fan håohåo!

(that not even the dogs would bark!)

Ma gef tungo' nai lalåhin i sengsong hafa na ora nai malolofan tenga si Sosambra

(The village men knew well what hour Sosambra often passed by)

ya ma nanangga ha' gi halom tano' gi fi'on i tipu' para u ma egga' yangin man lulupok.

(and waited in the jungle beside the well to watch when she would fetch water.)

Uttimo-ña, ti ma sungun esta nai famalao'an i sengsong ya man assoda' ya ma disidi

(In the end, the village women couldn't bear this anymore and they met and decided)

para uma puno' esti na palao'an i muna' fan atburutatao i asagua yan nobiu siha.

(to kill this woman who disturbed the husbands and boyfriends.)

Ma nangga un dia gi lemlem taotao ya ma chonnek i palao'an påpa' gi tipu'.

(They waited one day at twilight and pushed the woman down into the well.)

Sigi man achatgi sa' på'go nai ti u fan ma dingu nai lalahi

(They kept on laughing among themselves because now the men wouldn't leave them)

sa' taigue esta i å'paka' na palao'an.

(because the white lady is now gone.)

Gi sigente dia yan kada dia ma lipara nai famalao'an i sengsong

(The next day and every next day the village women noticed)

na kada måtto ayu na ora annai sesso maloffan i palao'an,

(that each time the hour came when the lady would often pass by)

man impirarao i lalåhin-ñiha ya pues man malingo ha' gi gima'.

(their men would get agitated and they would vanish from their houses.)

Man danña' ta'lo ya disidi para u ma ngelo' håfa bidan-ñiñiha i lalåhi.

(They gathered together again and decided to peep on what the men were doing.)

Annai ma rastreha i chalan, man ma sodda' i lalahi

(When they traced the road, they found the men)

na ma a'atan guato i tipu' ya gaigi un bunitata, å'paka', yan anåkoko' gapotilu-ña na palao'an

(looking at the well where there was a very beautiful, white and long-haired lady)

na ha tata'pang gue' ya sigi kumanta!

(washing herself and singing!)

Man lalangu todu i famalao'an sa' ma tungo' na espiritu ayu i ma li'e'

(The women became faint because they knew that what they were seeing was a spirit)

ya taya' siña esta ma cho'gue sa' ha atgimat esta todu i lalahin i sengsong!

(and that there was nothing else to do because she had bewitched all the village men!)

Alas uttimo ma fa'na'an si Sosambra palao'an man eggu'

(In the end the jealous women changed Sosambra's name)

utimo-ña ma tulaika para PALAO'AN MANEGGU'!

(finally to JEALOUS WOMAN!)

Gi prisente, gaigi esti na tupu' na ma haffot gi fi'on i guma' ridondo gi Songsong Village.

(At the moment, this well is buried next to the Round House in Songsong Village.)

Ma sasangan na yangin lemlem taotao, guaha nai ma li'e' buttun a'paka' na palao'an

(They say that at twilight one can see the figure of a white lady)

na sigi lumikuku guihi na lugåt sa' ha espipiha i tipu'-ña!

(who continuously goes around that area because she is looking for her well!)

The current Guma' Redondo (Round House) in Luta for public gatherings

SOME LANGUAGE NOTES

Atanon. When you add the suffix -on to a word, it means "capable of." Atan means "to look" so someone or something atanon is capable of being looked at, that is, pleasant to look at. Kanu'on means something edible (able for you to kånno'); tufungon means something countable (tufong) and so on.

Chuchurika. The more known word for this bird is chichirika, but in every language there are differences, depending on the place.

Echu. Rarely heard nowadays. It comes from the Spanish word hecho, meaning "made." Sometimes you can see on something you buy from a store, Hecho en México. Made in Mexico. In Chamorro, echu means something ready to be, ready to become, just become or has become.

Lipåra. I believe most Chamorro speakers say repåra or ripåra, using the R because the original Spanish word is repara. But many Chamorros don't like the R sound and change it to L.

Krusa. Also rarely heard. Borrowed from Spanish. It means to cross, as in "cross the road."

Tatfoi. Rarely heard and such a pity because it's such a nice word. It means "such that" or "so much so that." It comes from the Spanish tal fué, meaning "it was such that." Tatfoi i minalate'-ña na ni håyeye malago' kumontra gue'. Her intelligence was such that no one wanted to oppose her.

Tampoku (tampoko). Another Spanish loan word. It means "not even." Tampoko yo' ti ya-ho hao. Not even I like you.

Lemlem taotao. Means "dusk, twilight, sunset." But the word lemlem itself means "to be surprised or confused at first" by a change in the thing's appearance, as when you don't recognize someone you know at first because he has grown taller since you last saw him.

Rastreha (rastrea). From the Spanish. Spanish rastro and Chamorro låstro are the traces or marks left behind, like footprints or stains. Rastrea is to follow signs left by these marks.

Atgimat. To bewitch as in to make someone fall in love with you or someone else. It sounds suspiciously like a Spanish derivative but I have been unable to find the Spanish original.

Lumikuku. Most say lumiliku. Liliku means "to wander about" or "go around."

Eggu'. Eggu' is not generalized jealousy but specifically the romantic or sexual kind.

ESTORIAN I LEMMAI

Meggai åños tåtte na tiempo, åntes de i finatton i Españot, måtto gi islå-ta un tiempon ha'ilas.
(At a time many years ago, before the arrival of the Spaniards, a time of drought came to our island.)

Man måtai todo i tinanom siha. Ni un pedåson suni pat dågo pat ni håfafa na klåsen tinekcha siña ma sodda'.
(All the plants died. Not one piece of taro or yam nor any kind of fruit was able to be found.)

Man sen ñalang todo i taotao siha, kololo'-ña i man dikkike' na famagu'on.
(All the people were very hungry, especially the little children.)

Manetnon todo i maga'låhen i san lago na bånda para u ma deside håf para u ma cho'gue.
(All the chiefs of the northern/western* side met to decide what to do.)

Yan taiguennao lokkue' bidan-ñiha i maga'låhen siha gi san haya na bånda gi isla.
(And the chiefs of the southern/eastern side of the island did the same.)

I un gurupu ti ma tungo' håfa para bidan-ñiñiha i otro na gurupu.
(The one group did not know what the other group would be doing.)

Lao todo i dos gurupu ma deside para u tågo' uno na maga'låhe yan dos ga'chong-ña påtgon para u fanhånao para i otro na bånda pot para u tungo' håfa na nengkanno' siña guaha guihe.
(But both groups decided to send one chief and two child companions to go to the other side in order to know what food might be there.)

Ya ennao magåhet ma cho'gue.
(And that is, in fact, what was done.)

Sigiente dia, finakcha'i na uma'sodda' todo i dos na gurupu gi talo' gi isla.
(The following day, it happened that both groups met in the middle of the island.)

Hinengan i dos maga'låhe na pareho ha' intension-ñiha para u ketungo' håfa na nengkanno' siña ha' guaha gi otro bånda ya ma tutuhon i dos kumuentos pot i eskases ni muna' fañachatsaga todo i taotao siha gi isla.
(The two chiefs were surprised that their intentions to try to know what food might there be on the other side were the same, and the two began to converse about the scarcity which was putting all the people of the island in hardship.)

I kuåttro na famagu'on, pot i man yayas yan man ñålang, man åsson gi edda' para u fan maigo'.
(The four children, because they were tired and hungry, lay on the ground to sleep.)

Pot fin, kontodo i dos maga'låhe malingo maigo'-ñiha gi annai esta gespainge.
(At last, even the two chiefs fell asleep when it was already very late in the night.)

Gigon makmåta i dos maga'låhe, ma sodda' na man måtai i kuåttro na famagu'on mina' i niñalang-ñiha ni esta ti siña ma sungon.
(When the two chiefs woke up, they discovered that the four children died of their unbearable hunger.)

Gi trinisten-ñiha, i dos maga'låhe ma håfot i famagu'on ya ma håtsa åcho' latte gi naftan siha.
(In their sadness, the two chiefs buried the children and set up latte stones on the graves.)

Todo i taotao siha tumungo' na este na lugåt nai man ma håfot i kuåttro na famagu'on.
(Everyone knew that this was the place where the four children were buried.)

Åños despues, ma sodda' na kuåttro na trongko man dokko' guihe na lugåt, un trongko kada naftan.
(Years later, they saw that four trees grew in that place, one tree for each grave.)

Tåt nai ma li'e este na klåsen trongko, lao annai ma sotne ya ma kånno i tinekchå-ña, ei na minannge'!
(They had never seen this kind of tree, but when they boiled and ate its fruit, it was delicious!)

Ma ågang "lemmai" ya desde ayo para mo'na, tåya' na man måtai ñålang i taotao gi isla,
(They called it "lemmai," and from that time on, the people of the island never died of hunger,)

sa' achok ha' påkyo pat ha'ilas i tano', lamita gi sakkan guaguaha ha' lemmai para mantension i linahyan taotao.
(because even if there is typhoon or a drought in the land, half of the year there is still lemmai for the sustenance of the people.)

* san lago and san haya mean two different directions depending on which island (and sometimes village) you live in.

HÅFA MUNA' TÅYA' ATUNGO'-ÑIHA I FANIHI

Åntes na tiempo, annai tåya' trabia taotao mañåsaga gi hilo' tano'-ta,
(In past times, when no humans yet lived on our land,)

man sen afa'maolek todo i ga'ga' siha gi tano',
(all the animals on earth got along very well,)

tånto ayo siha i mañåsaga gi tano' yan kontodo i paluma siha ni man gugupu gi aire.
(those who stay on land and the birds as well who are flying in the air.)

Un dia, mampos maipe i ha'åne; i semnak mampos metgot.
(One day, the day was too hot; the sunshine was too strong.)

Pues man gupu i fanihi siha para u fan man espia liheng-ñiha,
(So the fruit bats flew to find their shelter,)

yan para u eskapåye i minaipen somnak.
(and to escape the heat of the sunshine.)

Ma sodda' dångkulon liyang ya mañåga ha' guihe, man magof yan mangontento.
(They found a huge cave and they stayed there, happy and content.)

Ayo mismo na ha'åne, man asangane i paluma siha.
(That very same day, the birds said to each other.)

"Kao ti en repåra na mås man dichoso hit ke ni pumalo siha na gå'ga'?" mamaisen un paluma.
("Do you not realize that we are more fortunate than the other animals?" one bird asked.)

"Man masåså'pet siha an mampos somnak i ha'åne, sa' ti siña siha man gupu, ti pareho yan hita."
("They suffer when the day is too sunny, because they cannot fly, not like us.")

Pues ma tutuhon i paluma siha ma butlea i ga'ga' siha gi tano'.
(So the birds began to ridicule the animals on the land.)

"Man metgot-ña ham ke hamyo na gå'ga' tåno'! Man malate'-ña ham ke hamyo!"
("We are stronger than you, the animals on land! We are smarter than you!")

Ya ennao mina' man mumu i paluma siha gi aire yan i ga'ga' siha gi tano'.
(And that is why the birds of the air and the animals on land fought.)

Gi mimun-ñiñiha, man gupu i paluma siha guato gi liyang nai man gaige i fanihi.
(In their fighting, the birds flew to the cave where the fruit bats were.)

"Hoi! Fan huyung hamyo na fanihi ya en ayuda ham man mumu yan i ga'ga' tåno'!"
("Hey! Come out you fruit bats and help us fight with the animals of the land!")

Ilek-ñiha i fanihi, "Ai lokkue'! Haftaimano para in fan mumu yan i ga'ga' tåno'?"
(The fruit bats said, "Oh dear! How are we to fight the animals of the land?")

"In na' gigimen i nenen-måme ni lechen-måme, pareho yan siha."
("We make our babies drink our milk, the same as them.")

Pues, gi linalålo'-ñiha nu i fanihi siha, ilek-ñiha i paluma, "Hamyo la'mon," ya man hånao.
(So, in their anger towards the fruit bats, the birds said, "Up to you," and they went.)

Diddide' despues, man finatoigue i fanihi siha nu i ga'ga' tåno' ya man finaisen,
(A little later, the fruit bats were visited by the animals of the land and were asked,)

"Kao man magof hamyo ya ta fan hita man mumu yan i paluma siha?"
("Would you be willing for us be together and fight the birds?")

"Ai lokkue'!" ilek-ñiha i fanihi. "Haftaimano para in fan mumu yan i paluma siha,
("Oh dear," said the fruit bats. "How are we going to fight the birds,)

yanggen man gugupu ham gi aire pareho yan siha?"
(if we fly in the air like they do?")

Man disgustao i ga'ga' tåno' siha mina' i ineppen-ñiha i fanihi ya ma sangåne i fanihi siha,
(The land animals were displeased because of the fruit bats' reply and they told the bats,)

"Hamyo la'mon, lao desde på'go para mo'na, tåya' esta entre hamyo yan hame."
("Up to you, but from now on, there is nothing between you and us.")

Ya desde ayo na ha'åne, tåya' atungo'-ñiha i fanihi.
(And since that day, the fruit bats have no friends.)

Man a'atok gi halom liyang an ha'åne,
(They hide inside caves when it is day,)

ya man huyung para u fan man espia na'-ñiha solo an puenge.
(and come out to look for their food only when it is night.)

TAOTAOMO'NA : ESTORIAN TAN KATMEN

The Road from Hagåtña to Sumay

My grandmother had a cousin whom we all called Auntie Måmmi'. Her name was Carmen Cruz, married to a Guzmán from Sumay. She was second cousins with my grandmother but for some reason they were more like sisters. Maybe it's because they were only one year apart in age. Grandma was born  in 1899 and Auntie Måmmi' in 1900.

Part of this closeness between them was that Auntie Måmmi' would spend a lot of time at our house. I mean she would spend 2 or 3 weeks at our house; the house that grandma and her sisters and I lived in. There was no extra bed. Auntie Måmmi' would share the same bed with one of the sisters.

Auntie Måmmi' couldn't speak English very well. She spoke broken English to me, but it was good enough for me to get what she was saying. She would also interject some Chamorro, which was great because that's partially how I got my start learning a little Chamorro.

I always enjoyed her long-term visits. She did interesting and cool things, like chew massive amounts of betel nut, with the works : pugua', pupulu, åfok and amåska (betel nut, pepper leaf, lime rock paste and chewing tobacco). She would spit this blood red juice into a Foremost milk carton stuffed with paper towels. She would drink water out of a låtan dudu. She wore enough gold bracelets to open her own store. Though her ear lobes sagged with age and gravity, she wore earrings and put lipstick on. Dudus biha. (Flirty old lady.)

But she was so interesting because of her stories. She loved to tell me her encounters with the taotaomo'na. Here are some.

WITH THE GOVERNOR

I guess she was a socialite of some sort, being a dudus lady. So when she told me that the Governor of Guam and his wife, sometime in the 1920s, asked her to accompany them to Sumay, I believed it.

She said they rode in his car, which had an open roof. It was dusk, the sun was setting and it was becoming perfectly dark. She was sitting in the back of the car, in a corner. The Governor and his wife were busy talking to someone else when she felt a presence next to her, standing outside the car but at her corner.

It was dark so she didn't see the features of this person standing next to her, but she had this feeling it was a strange person. The person started talking to her, but in a language she did not understand. And Auntie Måmmi' imitated the sound : bab bab bab bab.

In time, the Governor was ready to go and the driver started up the car and off they went, and Auntie Måmmi' did not say a word about it to the American Governor. Down they drove to Sumay along the road that you see in the photo above.

THE SPOOKY HILLS OF SANTA RITA

Auntie Måmmi' in fact married a Guzmán from Sumay and after the war moved to Santa Rita as all the Sumay people did on orders of the U.S. Navy.

As you may know, Santa Rita sits on the slope of Mount Alifan. Some of those houses there are right up against the mountain.

Auntie Måmmi' told me about living in one such house, with its back door facing the bushy slopes of the mountain.

Someone also living in the house, I forget who, would throw things into the bush behind the house, against the slope of the mountain. Then, when Auntie Måmmi' would open the back door when it was getting dark, she saw dark figures in the bush. There may have been more details to this story which I have forgotten. But the bottom line was that Auntie Måmmi' told the person to stop throwing junk in the back of the house. Apparently the taotaomo'na were not happy about it and made their presence known to Auntie Måmmi' to let them know it.

DON'T PEE OUTSIDE GUAM MEMORIAL HOSPITAL

My mother's brother Ning, Auntie Måmmi''s nephew, once went to GMH for some reason. It wasn't because he was sick. He went there either to visit someone who was sick, or some other business. Well, he parked in the back where the terrain is very rocky with coral rocks. He needed to relieve himself and he figured he could just do it safely by the cliff line, where it is rocky.

The following day his one foot was ablaze with painful swelling.

It was my Auntie Måmmi' who told me about it. "Isao-ña ha' si Ning!" "It's Ning's own fault!" she said.

"Sagan taotaomo'na i acho'," she said. "Rocky places are the abode of the taotaomo'na."

SHE SAW WHAT I COULDN'T SEE

Later in life, Auntie Måmmi' became one of the first residents at Guma' Trankilo, a residential area for elderly people. I would visit her there and she always said Tomhom (Tumon) was rife with taotaomo'na since ever since.

Tomhom had been a large Chamorro settlement long before the Spaniards came. Bones of our ancestors can be found everywhere underneath Tomhom's sandy soil.

Especially when it was dusk, I'd be sitting talking to Auntie Måmmi', with her facing the screen door many times, and she would interrupt our conversation to ask me, "Håye ennao?" as she looked at the screen door. I'd turn around and see no one. "Who's that?"

"Tåya' taotao, Auntie," I would reply. "There's no one."

"Hunggan guaha!" "Yes there is."

Then she'd look down or away. I guess whoever was there moved away.

I'd get a bit of chill but I never saw, heard or sensed anything.

Sometimes I wondered if it was just an old lady's imagination, or if my Auntie Måmmi' was something of an entertainer.

Auntie Måmmi' is the lady in front of the haligi (pillar) facing the camera. The other lady is her cousin, my Auntie Epa', my grandmother's sister, Josefa Torres Artero, whom we called Auntie Epa'.

Taken at a picnic in the 1980s at Ipao in Tomhom - sagan i taotaomo'na! Abode of the taotaomo'na!

FISHING WITH A TAOTAOMO'NA

http://www.kawikaspiritartstudio.com

Two kompådres agreed to go fishing one night at To'guan Bay in Humåtak. Since they would go out at night, they brought torches (hachon), along with their spears (sulo'). All things being prepared, one decided to nap since it was dark but the tide was still high.

"Wake me when it's time to go out," he said to his påre.

Some time later, he was awakened by the voice of his påre, saying it was time to go. "Find me there," he said to his awakening companion.

It took the awakening man to set out and he found his partner already in the water, fishing. He tried to approach him so they could fish together, but he noticed his påre was always a certain distance away, no matter how close he tried to approach. He also realized that his påre never looked in his direction.

For a long while, he never caught a single fish. He wanted to see how his påre was going, and noticed that he kept putting things from the ocean into his basket, boasting, "Bula yo'! Bula yo'" ("I have plenty!") But when he looked closer, his påre was only catching sea slugs.

He was not convinced that the man who awakened him and who was now fishing with him, was not his påre. Fear overtook him and he didn't know what to do. He decided to move closer to the mouth of the To'guan River, but his partner moved in that direction, too, keeping the same distance as before.

At some point, the man thrust his torch into the hole of a rock to kill it and surround himself in complete darkness. Then, following the river inside, he ran into the interior of the jungle, trying to escape this mysterious partner.

In the jungle, he came upon a group of young men, playing a game called guaoho, forming a circle in a clearing in the dark jungle. They were not men, but taotaomo'na!

Seeing his frightful fishing partner running into the jungle chasing him, the fisherman ran into the circle of taotaomo'na playing their game.

The spirit fishing partner saw this, and yelled out, as he pursued him, "Guaoho, guaoho, guaoho! Hasayon i tiguang-ho! Pao limut! Pao le'o! Pao acho'! Pao ma'ti!" ("Guaoho, guaoho, guaoho! My partner has an awful smell! He smells of moss, of seaweed, of rock and of low tide!")

This spirit tried to get into the circle of his fellow taotaomo'na to catch the man, but the other taotaomo'na defended the fisherman. They subdued the one taotaomo'na and allowed the fisherman to escape and return home, just as the sun was rising.

THE LEGEND OF AS MÅTMOS

Many years ago, before the Spaniards came, there was a village on Luta called As Måtmos. Måtmos means "drown." The village is long gone, but the area is still called that today.

You might think the village was called by this name because it was located on a cliff by the sea. One false step and you could fall off that cliff and drown in the sea.

But the ancients have another explanation.

In those days, villages in our islands loved to compete. There were rivalries between chiefs, between father and son, and also between villages.

One day, the chief of the village eventually called As Måtmos challenged another chief of another village to see who could grow more rice.

Rice, as you may know, needs a lot of water to grow. Rice cannot grow on dry land, even if it is watered a lot. It has to grow in wet lands, like swamps.

Growing rice seedlings (få'i) in a rice field (famå'yan)

Well, As Måtmos is very dry and rocky land by that seacoast cliff. Try and try as they might, the people of that village couldn't create a rice field. But their chief kept pressuring them, so they wouldn't loose the competition and become mamåhlao (ashamed).

There are two versions of the conclusion of this story. The first is that the people of the village got fed up with their chief's insane ambition to win, which would have been impossible. So, they threw him over the cliff and he drowned. In the second version, the chief himself, seeing how it was impossible to grow rice in his village's bad terrain, threw himself into the sea and drowned.

In either case, the chief drowned and the place was known henceforth as As Måtmos, the place of drowning.

The rocky, sandy land of As Måtmos