FIESTAN SAN ANTONIO

GUPOT SAN ANTONIO DE PADUA

Hunio dia 13

Tamuning's fiesta?  Well, one of them.

When the church we know today as Saint Anthony's was built in Tamuning after World War II, the original patron (and co-patron to this day) was Saint Victor.  America's victory in WWII can easily be seen as the connection.

But Chamorros didn't have a devotion to Saint Victor, and eventually Saint Anthony was added as a co-patron and eventually superceded Saint Victor for prime place.  The reason?

First of all, because Saint Anthony was greatly venerated by Chamorros, to the extent that his relic was venerated in all of Guam's churches every Tuesday.

Secondly, because prior to the war, there was a district (barrio) of Hagåtña called San Antonio, and the Spanish Capuchins built a chapel there in his honor, with at least one Sunday Mass there.  The barrio of San Antonio is where Padre Palomo Park, the U.S. Naval Cemetery and the now-defunct auto dealership are, in the old Ada's commercial area where Meskla restaurant is.  After the war, that entire area became commercial and the chapel was never rebuilt.  The devotion needed a locus, so Tamuning inherited it.

TIEMPON TERMITE

forestryimages.org

HOW DO YOU SAY "TERMITE" IN CHAMORRO?

ANSWER : TERMITE

(reason below)

What does June mean to you?

To me, it means termite season.

Every Corpus Christi, sometime in June, the termites come out of nowhere right when the sun sets.  For about half an hour, our life is made miserable as we turn off lights, run into our air-conditioned cars with the windows up, and swat termites that have flown into and under our shirts and blouses.

They seem to have their own village schedule.  This week, for 2 or 3 nights, it will be this part of Toto.  Next week, again for several nights, it'll be that part of Mangilao.  Just when you think termite season is over because tonight they did not come out in your neighborhood, you drive to the next village and get swarmed by termites.

FINO' CHAMORRO : TERMAIT

Why is there no authentic Chamorro word for termites?  Because we didn't have any on Guam until American times.  They snuck in, undocumented, hiding in uninspected, unfumigated, imported cargo, so I'm told.

CHAMORRO TERMITE MAGIC

thesimpledollar.com

When I was a kid, I thought grandma was the coolest magician because all she had to do was get the palanggåna (bucket, basin or tub), fill it with water, place it under the ceiling lights where the termites all buzzed, and instantly they dropped into the palanggåna and drowned.  It was as if they were magnetically pulled from the ceiling into grandma's palanggåna.

WHY CHAMORROS NEVER KILL THE GUALIIK

wettropics.gov.au

EI NA YINA-HO CHUMOCHO TERMAIT!

Termites are so månngengengenge'!

TODAY'S CHAMORRO WORD : CHÅCHAK

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MA CHÅCHAK I KEK

CHÅCHAK : to cut

But not for everything!  For example, you wouldn't use chåchak for "to cut hair."  Or "to cut something off."

Chåchak i mannok.  Cut up the chicken.

Ma chåchak i kanai-ho.  They cut my hand.

Dångkulo i ma chachak-mo!  Your incision is large! (As in after surgery.)

Chachåke.  To cut for someone.

Chachåke mai'es i puyitos.  Cut up corn for the little chicks.

Achachak.  To cut each other; to separate from another.

Umachachak si Jose yan i lahi-ña.  Jose and his son are divided.

Mañåchak.  To cut.

Ti un tungo' mañåchak!  You don't know how to cut/slice.

Chinachak.  To be cut.

Kao chinachak hao?  Were you cut?

AUTOMOTIVE CHAMORRO

The owner of this car provides us both the family name (Gumataotao) and the family nickname (Cherick).

The spelling of "Cherick" shows American influence.  Others would spell it "Chirik."

I know of a few Chirik Gumataotaos in Chalan Pago.

LOST SURNAMES : LASCANO

quesignificaelapellido.com

LASCANO

Lascano, or Lazcano (remember, spelling was not uniform many years ago), is a Basque name from Spain.  There used to be a Lascano family on Guam for many years.  They were here from at least 1758 until the early 1900s.

A Pampanga (Filipino) soldier by the name of Manuel Francisco Lascano was on Guam in 1758, married to what I suspect was a Chamorro wife named Maria Lucia Mamingin.  By 1758, they had four boys, no girls.  You would think that this was a good sign that the family name would survive.

However, by 1897, there were only two people on the island with the Lascano last name.  One was an elderly man in Hågat named  Policarpio Pinaula Lascano, married to Maria Dueñas de la Cruz.  Policarpio's father was from Humåtak.  Apparently, Policarpio and Maria (in their late 40s) had no children.

Then, in Humåtak, there was in 1897 a widow named Maria Lascano, whose deceased husband was Geronimo Aguon*.  There were other Lascanos, all women, who married into the Aguon, Tajalle and Quinata families.  A prevalence of girls in the family lead to the disappearance of the surname.  It survived only as a middle name until sixty years ago or so, and overwhelmingly in Humåtak.

*See my post on "Geronimo" as a first name.

I KOREAS

NOT NORTH OR SOUTH KOREA...BUT THE BELT CALLED "KOREAS"

Pre-War Koreas

A koreas is a leather belt, worn in olden times by women for religious purposes.

From 1769 until 1899, the Catholic missionaries in the Marianas were from a specific Order, following a specific saint with their own devotions and particular customs.  This Order was the Augustinian Recollect Order.  They followed Saint Augustine and had a devotion to Our Lady of Consolation.

You can see in the painting above, a depiction of the traditional story that the Blessed Mother appeared to Saint Monica to console her as she prayed with tears for her son Augustine's conversion.  Mary appeared to her wearing a leather belt.  She gave this belt to Saint Monica.  When Augustine converted to the Catholic Faith, Saint Monica gave it to her son.  Saint Augustine then added it to the habit (religious uniform or robes) of his followers, the Augustinians.  The Spaniards called this leather belt the correas; in Chamorro koreas.

You can see these Spanish Augustinian Recollect Friars wearing the leather belt or koreas.

When the Augustinian Recollects (Rekoletos) came to the Marianas in 1769, they formed a religious society for married women, the Cofradía de Nuestra Señora de la Consolación - the Society of Our Lady of Consolation.  Old-timers simply called it the Cofradía.  It was the precursor of today's Christian Mothers.

The women of the Cofradía got to wear the koreas, too.  The koreas was blessed by a priest and was considered a holy object.  In fact, many people would bend down and kiss the Augustinian priest's koreas as a sign of respect.

Now since the Cofradía women owned one, it also became a household item.  It was usually hung on the wall and used as an object of devotion.  When a Cofradía member died, she was buried with it.  During the war, the owner of this koreas wore it around her waist as a sign of protection from the Blessed Mother from the Japanese.

blogdeharaldica.blogspot.com
AUGUSTINIAN LOGO WITH CORREAS

But the koreas also had a very practical use, as an instrument of corporal punishment.  The idea was, since it was blessed, the wayward child could be straightened out by the Blessed Mother if whipped with the koreas.  Nina'tunas as Santa Maria, nai.

One lady told me this story.  During the war, when the family lived on the ranch, one of her brothers was near the woods and saw something unusual.  He was frozen and could not speak.  The father knew that the boy must have seen something spooky in the jungle.  He asked his wife for her koreas and whipped the boy with it.  The boy shouted "Ai puti!" (Ow, it hurts!)  The koreas got back his voice, his senses, and his sense of pain!  A blessed object was what was needed, because of what he saw in the jungle.

The Augustinian priests were expelled by the Americans in 1899 and the Capuchin Franciscans replaced them in 1901.  The Capuchins follow Franciscan traditions, not Augustinian ones, but the pious women on Guam were so attached to the Cofradía and the koreas that the Spanish Capuchins did not change the custom.  It was only after the war and with the arrival of American Capuchins that the custom of the koreas died out.  The Cofradía was replaced by the Christian Mothers.

Very few people in the Marianas still have a genuine koreas from before the war in the family treasure box.  I am so fortunate to have found one.

SAINTS, GRANDPA AND LOST CHILDREN

stmaryourladyofransom.com

HOW CHAMORRO PARENTS GAVE NAMES TO THEIR CHILDREN

First of all, without question and exception, all babies were given, from Spanish times, religious or Christian names.  Most of the time it was the name of a person (Jesus, Maria, Jose) but sometimes it was a title of Mary (Dolores, Pilar) or a mystery of the faith (Encarnacion, Concepcion).

But, among the many religious names possible, which ones to give this or that particular baby?

Names were often given on the basis of :

1. THE SAINT OR FEAST OF THE DAY

In those days, every day of the year had a saint or saints of the day.  In some families, on the day a baby boy was born, they just looked at the day on their Catholic calendar, and if the male saint of the day was San Fructuoso, then that was the baby's name.  If a girl was born on the feast day of Santa Mafalda, in many families, that's the name she got.  This accounts for some of our elders having (for us) strange and exotic names : Recaredo, Prepedigna, Telesforo, Reducinda.

On some days, there was an important religious feast and sometimes the child was named in honor of the feast.  If a girl was born on December 8, she might be named Concepcion (Immaculate Conception); if on August 15 she might be named Asuncion (Assumption).  If a boy was born on Christmas Day, he might be called Jesus or Manuel (Emmanuel).

The day of birth, many times, had nothing to do with it.  Individual devotion guided the choice of name.  A family, or a parent, might have great devotion to San Jose or San Roque, so there would be kids named after them.  There are a few Judes from Sinajaña, and Anthonys from Tamuning.  Our school bus used to pick up a girl in Chalan Pago, whose name was Paz.  Go figure.

2. TO HONOR SOMEONE IN THE FAMILY CIRCLE...OR OTHERWISE

There were a lot of Pedros in my family.  That's because the patriarch was Pedro Rodriguez Torres.  He had no boys, but the one and only grandson was named Pedro.  Then a great-grandson was named Pedro.  The matriarch was Josefa, so a granddaughter and great-granddaughter were also named Josefa or Josephine by the time the U.S. flag was waving over us.

Since, in one family, grandfather, father and son might all be named Jose, one had to clarify which Jose one was talking about.  Josen Dångkulo (Big Jose) and Josen Dikkiki' (Little Jose) would be one way, or Josen Tata (Jose the Father or Grandfather) and Josen Påtgon (Jose the Child).  Another way would be to call the child Joselito, Juanito, Pascualito and so on.

But there were more than blood relatives to honor.  Taking the godparent's first name was also a common Chamorro custom. 

There were/are also a few Romans, Leons, Bernabes, Canices, Arnolds...and even one or two Erics running around because parents named their boys in honor of a priest.  There have also been a few John Pauls.  Their parents shot higher.  Back in the 30s and 40s, when we had one Pope Pius after another, there were a few Chamorro babies baptized Pio.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt was president for so long in the 30s and 40s that there are a handful of middle-aged Franklins born on Guam.  And a few Eleanors (if you catch the connection).

3. TO HONOR A PRIOR CHILD WHO DIED

Not a few times have I come across, in baptismal records or in speaking with families, two children named Jose or Maria, and to find out that the older Jose or Maria died in infancy.  Some parents named a subsequent child after the deceased child.  In Chamorro, this was called "ma na' lå'la' ta'lo i matai na påtgon," giving back life to the deceased child.  The loss was redeemed by doing this.

TODAY'S CHAMORRO WORD : KÅNDET

flickr.com

KÅNDET : instrument giving light (not the light itself, which is a different word)

Before the Spaniards, Chamorros certainly had light from fire.  As recently as our grandparents' time, Chamorros would put coconut oil in a vessel, place some kind of wick and light it, so that was more than likely possible hundreds of years ago as well.

But when the Spaniards introduced glass oil or kerosene lamps, Chamorros borrowed the Spanish word for "lamp," -  "candil."  We pronounce it kåndet.

But, don't forget, when we place the definite article "i" (the) in front of kåndet, that changes the å to a plain a (sounding more like the "a" in "apple.") 

Back in the days when one lit lamps, and didn't turn them on, you said "na' fañila' i kandet."  Fañila' means "to give off or reflect light."  "Mañiñila' ma'lak i mata-mo," means, "Your face is radiating brightly."  Na' is to make something happen.  Na' fañila'.  To make shine, radiate.

But then came the Americans and electricity and light switches, something new to us and we had to find new vocabulary for turning on switches which we didn't have before.

One solution was na' la'la'.  La'la' means "alive, to live."  Na' la'la' i kandet means to make the electrical light come alive.   When the switch is off, that bulb certainly looks dead.  It comes alive with electricity at the turn of the switch.

So the opposite would be to take the life away from the light; i.e. to kill.  So, "puno' i kandet."  Kill the light.  One kills a fire, too, so why not?

In modern times, many people use the English "on" and "off."  Na' on i kandet; na' off i kandet.

A CHAMORRO NAMED GERONIMO

commons.wikimedia.org

Years ago I was helping a Chamorro lady do her family tree.  Her grandfather's name was Geronimo, and she said to me, "I wonder why he had an Indian name."

The fact is Geronimo is not an Indian name.  It's Spanish, and it's the Spanish form of the name Jerome.

The famous Apache warrior and chief (pictured above) was given the Spanish name Geronimo (also spelled Jeronimo in Spanish) by Americans who heard Mexican soldiers scream "San Jeronimo!" (Saint Jerome!) when they were fighting the Apaches.  They thought that was the Apache chief's name.

Sometimes Chamorros will have Spanish names that are unfamiliar to us, and which sound like something else but with no real connection.  An example of this is the male name Froilan, a name some Chamorros had (and some still do).  There was a Spanish saint by the name of Froilan, but it sounds similar to the German word "fraulein" or "miss" (unmarried woman).  So, some people think Froilan is a German name.

FAMILIA : LIZAMA

tpino.netfirms.com

LIZAMA

In 1758, a Lizama shows up for the first time in a Guam census (which we currently have).  His name was Luis de Lizama and he is listed among the Pampanga soldiers.  We know nothing more about him.

His wife was Teresa Ursula Sinia.  Who she was and where she came from is not known.  It is possible that Teresa was Chamorro and for the following reasons.  First, although a good number of Spanish and Filipino soldiers brought wives with them, many did not and instead married Chamorro women.  Second, there is another wife of a Pampanga (Filipino) soldier by the last name Sina.  People were much more casual about spelling in those days, and Sinia and Sina could very well be the same last name.  If so, they may have been sisters and it is less likely, though not impossible, that two sisters from abroad came to Guam as wives of soldiers.  Finally, but probably most convincingly, Sinia/Sina could very well be the Chamorro word siña, which means "possible, able."  Sinia/Sina is not a Spanish surname, that is more certain.

Whatever the case, the Lizamas of the Marianas seem to be one family, descended from Luis de Lizama who came to Guam in the 1750s if not before.  By the time of the 1758 census he had four children, two boys and two girls.

The name itself is found in Spain and in her former colonies.  But it is not extensive (like, let's say, Garcia or Fernandez).  It's actually not very widespread at all.  It seems to be a variation (again, clerks in those days spelled things the way it suited them) of Lezama.  Even in the Guam census of 1897, Lizama is sometimes spelled Lezama, depending on who was the clerk writing the name.

Lezama is the name of a small village in Spain; in the Basque province of Vizcaya to be exact.  Therefore, it's not Castillian but Basque, and scholars aren't certain of the meaning of the name.  There is yet another hamlet named Lezama in the neighboring, and still Basque, province of Ålava.

How a soldier from Pampanga, Philippines got the surname Lizama is not known.  Like many other Filipinos, he may have been mestizo himself; part-Filipino and part-Hispanic (whether Spanish or Latin American is unknown).

By the late 1800s, one or two Lizamas had served the local government, probably in more than one capacity.  Chamorros were given local offices, such as neighborhood chiefs, supervisors of agriculture or livestock, justices of the peace and so on.  They were then allowed to use the title "Don" which means, more or less, "Sir."  There was one Don Hipolito Cruz Lizama in Hagåtña, married to Dolores Pangelinan.  And one Don Joaquin Lizama, married to Vicenta Guzman.  Don Hipolito was the head of one of the neighborhoods in Hagåtña.  These neighborhoods were called "barangay" and the official was called the "cabeza de barangay."  "Cabeza" literally means "head" in Spanish.

From Hagåtña, the Lizamas spread out to nearly every other settlement in the Marianas.  By the late 1800s, there were Lizamas in Hågat and neighboring Sumay, and two Lizama teenage women in Inalåhan.  One Jose Lizama moved to Luta (Rota) and probably married a Rotanese Chamorro woman with the last name Mundo.  Several Lizamas moved to Saipan where the Lizama name is still going strong.

In the U.S. mainland, you're more likely to bump into a few Lizamas in California (370 people as of 2009) and in Texas (212 people), and I'll bet a good number of them will be Chamorro Lizamas, besides the Hispanic Lizamas.

NA' MERIENDA

It's so important to laugh and take joy in the simple pleasures of life.  Sen månnge' para ta fañålek ya ta agradese i otdinårio yan diårio na bendision ni ha nånå'e hit si Yu'us.

You know, we have a lot of great treats in our Chamorro cuisine.

Merienda is a snack in between lunch (na' talo'åne or atmotsan talo'åne) and dinner (sena).  My grandma usually had it around 4pm.  The following foods in the clip make great na' merienda (merienda snacks).

In this video clip, we see :

APIGIGI - månha (young coconut meat), tapioca, sugar, wrapped in banana leaf.  The smell of semi-burnt banana leaf adds that special flavor to it.

EMPANÅDA - usually chicken in corn meal and achote, but here they made it with corned beef!  Will wonders never cease?

TAMÅLES MENDIOKA - made with mendioka (tapioca)

TAMÅLES GISU - corn meal, partially with achote, and a strip of bacon. 

POTO - spongy, sweet rice cakes (tuba or coconut toddy makes all the difference)

TITIYAS MÅNHA - flat bread made with månha (young coconut meat)

But wait a minute; what about :

Roskete - Latiya - Kalamai - Boñuelos - Buchibuchi - Påstet - Konsetba - Goyoria - Åhu - Coconut Candy - Champulådo - Pån Tosta - Broas - Madoya - Etc - Etc - Etc

A VILLAGE CALLED "TODAY STREET?"

Many of you are aware that pa'go means "today" or "now."  Why would anyone call a village "Today Street?"

But there's a difference between pa'go, with that glottal stop choking you in the middle of the word, and pago, with no glottal stop.

Pago is a kind of hibiscus plant that often grows on the seashore.  One of Guam's bays is called Pago Bay.

Here's the bay :

guam-online.com

Here's the kind of hibiscus known in Chamorro as pago :

flickr.com

Up till 1856, there was a village on the north shore of Pago Bay called Pago.  It was hard hit by an earthquake in 1849, a typhoon in 1855 and then the smallpox epidemic of 1856.  The few survivors abandoned the village and moved to Hagåtña, Sinajaña and other villages.

So the village we now call Chalan Pago was so-named because, starting in Hagåtña, the "road to Pago" ran through the area.

TODAY'S CHAMORRO WORD : CHÅDA'

dailyperricone.com

CHÅDA'.  Egg.

Inaflitun chåda'.  Fried egg.

Agaga' chåda'.  The yolk of the egg. 

Yema.  The egg yolk, but a less familiar word and taken from the Spanish.

Flamengko.  Raw egg beaten with vanilla extract and alcohol (usually rum).

Chåda' guero.  Rotten egg.

Mañåda'.  To lay eggs.

Kao esta mañåda' i mannok?  Did the hen lay eggs yet?

Chadåe.  To add or mix with eggs.

Hu gisa i seboyas pues hu chadåe.  I fry the onions then I add eggs.

Fañåda'an.  Where hens lay eggs.

Chåda' fresko.  Fresh eggs (not store bought).

Lassas chåda'.  Egg shell.

Kåskaran chåda'.  Also egg shell.

AIRPORT EXPANSION?

Dedication of the Old Airport 1967

IN TODAY'S PDN : GOVERNOR SEEKING EXPANSION OF A.B. WON PAT AIRPORT

Who remembers the Old Terminal?  It replaced the old quonset hut terminal in 1967 when tourist flights from Japan began and revolutionized the island economy.  That's the backside of Governor Manuel Guerrero at the podium facing the audience.

THE TERRITORIAL PARTY

Uncle Ben Reyes was not only Territorial; he was one of the leaders of the Territorial Party, and past chairman.  In those days, politics on Guam had all the fervor of religion.

The poor TP was a constant loser in election after election.  Most years, all 21 Popular or Democratic senatorial candidates won, called "Black Jack."  Finally, in 1964, the TP won a majority in the 8th Guam Legislature with Carlos P. Taitano as Speaker.  Uncle Ben was also elected; his 2nd term having served before in the 3rd Guam Legislature.  But in the very next election, the TP not only lost the majority - they lost every single seat to the Democrats.

In response to this loss, some of the TP leadership moved towards organizing the Republican Party on Guam.  Uncle Ben was one of the founders of that party.  But not every TP member was in favor of that.  Some moved to the Democrats, and some remained Territorial.

Uncle Ben's wife, my grandmother's sister, Ana, was one such Territorial.  At first, she refused to quit the TP.  She made Uncle Ben sleep on the couch for a while because he had gone Republican.

In time, the TP phased out completely, and Uncle Ben didn't have to sleep on the couch anymore.

Left : Carlos P. Taitano

Right : My uncle Ben, Judge Vicente C. Reyes

OLD TIME TERRITORIALS

Other past Territorials : Agueda Johnston, Antonio SN Duenas (Kaila), James Butler, Felix Carbullido, Carlos P. Bordallo, Concepcion Barrett, Vicente Aflague, Lagrimas Untalan, Eduardo T. Calvo (Jake), Paul M. Calvo, Albert T. Carbullido, Raymond Underwood, Edward G. Camacho, Francisco B. Leon Guerrero, Frank D. Perez (Goyo), Cynthia J. Torres, Gregorio D. Perez (Goyo), Lucas San Nicolas, Alberto Lamorena, Tommy Flores (Takai), Felix L. Crisostomo (Beyong), Pete P. Ada, Maria T. Garrido, Tomas S. Tanaka, Antonio Q. Sablan (Lightning), G. Ricardo Salas, Tomas R. Santos.....yan meggai ta'lo mås.