PEACEFUL PULANTAT

 

The people of Pulantat are so very content to live there and they have all the reasons for being so. Except for the occasional flooding during heavy rains or typhoons, Pulantat is quiet and surrounded by nature. It breathes "family" and the people wouldn't have it any other way. The people are sure to add "Pulantat" to "Yoña" when they inform you where they're from.

Having gone to elementary school from 1st to 6th grades at Saint Francis School in Yoña, I've heard about Pulantat from a very young age. Classmates came from Pulantat but I never ventured into this area of Yoña till I was much older.

I thought it had a reputation for roughness, but I'm told it's far from that. A local resident told me, "Pulantat is quiet. There's another neighborhood in Yoña where rougher guys live and if they come to Pulantat looking for a fight, they'll find it and they will lose. They always lose because you don't just fight 2 or 3 guys in Pulantat. The whole family comes out to settle things."

FAMILY

FORMER SENATOR AND YOÑA MAYOR JOSÉ "PEDO" TERLAJE AND FAMILY

Pulantat resident his whole life

Residents of Pulantat have a strong sense of family being rooted in the area. Over the years, others have moved in, but the older families associated with Pulantat are still well-known.

In the 1950 Census, the largest clans living in Pulantat at that time were the Toves and Terlaje (Cha'ka/Pedo) families, and there are some blood connections between these two families, as well. There were also Pulantat residents named Baza, Cruz, Pangelinan, Ogo, Quitaro, Tenorio and Sablan in the 1950 Census.

The Camacho (Trabuko), Cruz (Kúkuri), Pocaigue (Pokiki), Cruz (Dulili) and Tenorio (Labucho) families are also associated with Pulantat, and there are a number of other families, as well.

In fact, a man who only recently moved to Pulantat told me that even though the street he lives on is practically all people from the same family, they have accepted him and his wife and children as members of the community on that street. "Pulantat is a place I'd want my children to grow up in. My kids can run to the neighbors' houses to play. In Pulantat there are big lawns and back yards. We are surrounded by nature. And everyone on the street looks out for each other. When we see a car we don't recognize, we keep an eye out."

Another long-time resident told me, "People from here (Pulantat) who move to the States always know that they still have a home here they can come back to. Our roots here are permanent. If you're from Pulantat, you will never be homeless because you will always have a home to come back to here."

"People in Pulantat don't like to sell their land. They've already earmarked the land for their descendants," this man told me.

A definite draw for Pulantat in the old days was agriculture. "Back in the day, Pulantat was a place of abundance. They grew everything here. A lot of it wasn't even sold. The food was grown and the animals raised to supplement the family's income. Some of it was sold, but some of it was just given away. Shared with other families, or used to exchange one thing for another. Nowadays it's a lot less. Garden-type produce; papaya, cucumbers, beans (friholes), bananas."

FLOODING AND DUMPING

A CAR CAUGHT IN A FLOOD IN PULANTAT IN 2017

"It never fails," says a resident of Pulantat, whenever there is heavy rain.

"It's not every part of Pulantat, but if you're place is lying low, in a valley, you're going to get flooded. It doesn't take a typhoon to flood the place."

A PULANTAT HOME WAIST-HIGH IN WATER AFTER A TYPHOON 

"Other than the flooding, Pulantat is a great place to live. Thank God the flooding is just now and then."

There is one other drawback, though, and yet it doesn't hurt Pulantat residents except for the blight on the neighborhood scenery and the hassle of now having to deal with abandoned material on your property. The problem is illegal dumping, even of stolen cars.

"Pulantat is so out-of-the-way, and some parts can be very isolated, that outsiders take advantage of that and come dump their stuff here and there," one villager shared. "People find spots where they think no one will catch them, especially at night."

"NO DUMPING"

There is an area, just as you descend the hill into Pulantat, that was used as a dump site. It was an actual dump site used by the US Navy after the war. There is a fence now and it is pad locked, and the Mayor, it is said, is looking into permanently shutting down the dump site.

PULANTAT EARTH STATION

In 1969, Pulantat became the site of an RCA satellite earth station, capable of using telephone, television, telex, facsimile and high speed data communication technology. The site still functions as a satellite station but now for a different company.

SCHOOL BUS DRIVERS

When I was talking once with a Pulantat residence if it were true that many school bus drivers were from Pulantat, without hesitation he started to name them. "David Cruz, also known as 'Shorty.' From the Dulili family. Mike Camacho. Peter Elatico, but with him you have the Camacho family, too. And Pio Quidachay."

LATTE SITE

Little-known by the general public, and it's better that way, is the fact that Pulantat has a latte stone site, hidden away in the brush.

"It's not just latte stones," one Pulantat resident told me. "My kids will be playing in the back yard and come running to me that they found something." It doesn't take a lot of digging, he told me, to find pottery shards and smoothed stones. Pulantat is literally strewn with ancient Chamorro remains, as well as World War II artifacts, some of which could be dangerous.

TAOTAOMO'NA

Which lead me to ask some Pulantat people, "Is Pulantat full of taotaomo'na?"

One man replied, "They could be standing right next to you and me right now."

When I asked what specific areas of Pulantat are known for taotaomo'na, most people said the whole place can be their spot, and that everyone must be respectful everywhere in Pulantat. "Just be respectful and don't disturb the place and nothing bad will happen."

One resident, whose house is not far from a drop in the terrain leading down to Mañenggon said that the back side of his house is believed to be a taotaomo'na trail. "They use that path to go down to the river," he said. He tells his children to avoid that spot.

TENORIO TITIYAS FACTORY

A Pulantat family, the Tenorios or Labucho clan, make titiyas in their Pulantat facility. They are sold in stores all over the island.

So from titiyas to taotaomo'na, from satellites to school bus drivers, Pulantat has a lot of interesting things. But, above all, Pulantat has peace and that's the way its community wants it to remain.

FAMILIA : CARBULLIDO

THE FOUR CARBULLIDO SONS

Clockwise starting at top left : LUÍS, JOSÉ, SEBASTIÁN, JESÚS

The Carbullido family on Guam is a well-documented one. It is so well-documented that many in the family have a very good family tree worked out. But this blog post adds a few details which family researchers may not have access to.

From the Agat sacramental records, which cannot be open to the general public in order to respect the privacy of individuals and families, we know that the first Carbullido on Guam was a man named

ANDRÉS RODRÍGUEZ CARBULLIDO

He was Filipino and born around the year 1834. The best we can say is "around," because many people in those days didn't know their birthday (there was hardly any reason to know that in those days of little paper work, widespread illiteracy and simple farming life). Many people just guessed their ages and didn't even bother to check church records or get a certificate. There was little need for such things in the old days. Most people didn't even celebrate birthdays. There were no driver's licenses, voter registration or credit card applications.

Andrés was the son of EDUARDO CARBULLIDO and ANDREA RODRÍGUEZ.

The 1920 Guam Census states he was from Manila, and maybe he was, but I'd hold off on stating that as an absolute fact because those census takers in those days just relied on what the person claimed, and some people were casual with details. A person could have just said "Manila" when in fact they were from 50 miles away from Manila, but most people knew Manila, not the little town 50 miles away, so they said, "Manila."

For whatever reason, Andrés came to Guam, certainly by the 1850s (he would have been in his 20s) because his oldest child was born on Guam in the 1850s. Some Filipinos appear on lists of deportees, sent to the Marianas in exile for crimes or for anti-Spanish political activities. Andrés doesn't appear on any such lists, just as many Filipinos who moved to Guam in the 1800s do not appear on deportation lists and came to Guam for other reasons, of which we know little or nothing.

When Andrés came to Guam, at some point he married the Chamorro JOSEFA DE LEÓN GUERRERO BLANCO from Hagåtña, the daughter of Martín Blanco and Marta de León Guerrero. But Andrés made his home in Hågat. Whether he met Josefa in Hågat or Hagåtña we don't know as we do not have their marriage record, but their children were all born in Hågat so I would put my money on Josefa having moved to Hågat already and having met Andrés there. Other Blancos, originally from Hagåtña, had also moved to Hågat in the mid 1800s.

ANDRÉS and JOSEFA had sons and daughters, but it was the sons, of course, who continued handing down the Carbullido name to their children. The Carbullidos multiplied and now number so many hundreds of people that I will keep things simple in this blog post an focus on just the four sons, from whom all the rest are descended. Most people know their grandparents and even great grandparents, but less know about the older generations so I will stick with them.

The four sons were LUÍS, JOSÉ, JESÚS and SEBASTIÁN.

CARBULLIDO-CHARFAUROS

LUÍS BLANCO CARBULLIDO, born around 1859. He married MANUELA CHARFAUROS the daughter of Pilar Charfauros. Manuela and her mother Pilar are found in the 1897 Guam Census, and Pilar is stated to be a widow, but her late husband's name is not mentioned (quite naturally as a census if of living people, not the deceased). Most records state that Manuela was the daughter of Pilar, with no father stated. One record states that Manuela's father was Luís Charfauros, about whom I cannot find any other documentation. Remember Spanish women keep their birth names even when they marry. So if Pilar is named Charfauros, that's her birth name, even if she later married a man with the same last name. 

But most documents state that Manuela Charfauros was the daughter of Pilar Charfauros, with no father stated. For now, I am more comfortable sticking to what is most clear; that Manuela Charfauros was the daughter of Pilar Charfauros. This Luís Charfauros needs more documentation for me to be more confident who he was in relation to Manuela Charfauros and that he was even married to Pilar at all.

Luís Carbullido and Manuela Charfauros had many daughters, but also at least two sons, Vicente and Joaquín. Vicente had one son, Francisco Arceo Carbullido who had many children, but Joaquín had all daughters.

CARBULLIDO-MANIBUSAN

JOSÉ BLANCO CARBULLIDO, born around 1865. He married ANA DELGADO MANIBUSAN, the daughter of Ignacio Manibusan and María Delgado. José was not as prolific as his brothers and had a few daughters and one son, Ignacio, who was still single at age 30 and apparently never married nor sired children.

CARBULLIDO-PANGELINAN

This is the branch of Carbullidos that produced the largest number of male descendants.

JESÚS BLANCO CARBULLIDO, born around 1870, married ENRIQUETA BORJA PANGELINAN, the daughter of Juan Pangelinan and María Borja. Juan Pangelinan was better known as Juan Kotla. Jesús and Enriqueta had five sons, besides their daughters : Antonio, Félix, Juan, Baltazar and Joaquín and many descendants from them.

CARBULLIDO-MUÑA

SEBASTIÁN BLANCO CARBULLIDO, born around 1877, married LUISA DUEÑAS MUÑA, the daughter of Vicente Muña and Cornelia Dueñas. Among their children, at least two sons had children : José and Francisco.

THE DAUGHTERS

Andrés and Josefa had four daughters as well, who all got married so their children carried their father's last names. The daughters were ANA, who married Juan Santos; FELISA, who married Juan Cruz Terlaje; MARÍA, who married José Delgado Manibusan; and TRINIDAD, who married Luís SN Aguigui (familian Taibas).

THE LADRES/LADRESS MISTAKE

Many Carbullido family trees make the mistake of calling Andrés ANDRÉS RODRÍGUEZ LADRES/LADRESS CARBULLIDO. Many even believe that Andrés' mother's maiden last name was LADRES. But LADRES is not found in any of the documents of the time in which they lived. It only shows up in modern family trees. LADRES is obviously someone's clerical error, based on the first name ANDRÉS. Then the next person just accepts the first person's error as accurate and puts it in the next family tree, and on it goes, the error is passed on to the next person. 

Some don't even know what to do, now, with the Rodríguez. Does it come before or after Ladres? So some do it one way, and some do it the other way. One even put Rodríguez in parentheses - "Rodríguez" - as if Andrés was not really a Rodríguez.

You can see how easy it is for one person to make a mistake, and even the mistake is mistakenly repeated. They don't all spell LADRES the same way! In any case, Andrés was ANDRÉS RODRÍGUEZ CARBULLIDO, no more, no less, not even Ladress. The sacramental records written at the time are clear.

1909 HÅGAT PETITION

That the Carbullido clan had standing in the Hågat community is shown in more than one way, including this 1909 Petition by leaders of the village to keep their Spanish priest (at the time threatened with being replaced by a German priest). Three of the four Carbullido brothers signed the petition; José, Luís and Jesús.

Luís, in fact, was gobernadorcillo of Hågat for awhile during the Spanish administration, a position that was like a village mayor at the time.

WELL-KNOWN CARBULLIDOS

Carbullidos continued to be in leadership in Hågat in modern times. 

Jesús Blanco Carbullido was Assistant Commissioner of Hågat in the early 1900s under the Americans. "Commissioner" is what village mayors were called back then.

Antonio Pangelinan Carbullido was Hågat Commissioner both before and after the war.

His son Albert Taitano Carbullido was well-known in his day as a Government of Guam director/chief of various departments, one of his best known being head of the Guam Election Commission. Prior to his civic life, Albert was on Canton Island working for Pan American Airways when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. He then enlisted in the US Navy and served in the war.

Albert's brother Felix Taitano Carbullido was a member of the 2nd and 3rd Guam Legislatures, a founder of the Territorial Party and engaged in the insurance business on Guam.

Antonio's brother Baltazar Pangelinan Carbullido became an educator and civic leader, being a teacher, school principal, member of the Guam Legislature, businessman and active in several island associations. The elementary school in Barrigada is named after him (BP Carbullido Elementary School).

Their nephew Francisco Chaco Carbullido had the distinction of being one of the Wake Island Defenders at the beginning of World War II. He was made a Prisoner of War by the Japanese and sent to China and Japan until war's end.

Francisco's son F. Philip Carbullido is Chief Justice of the Guam Supreme Court.

ALL CARBULLIDOS

Clockwise starting at top left : Baltazar, Albert, Francisco and F. Philip

FORMER SENATOR FELIX TAITANO CARBULLIDO

THE CARBULLIDO NAME

One question that has nagged some members of the Carbullido family is the origin of the name itself.

As we know, Andrés, the founder of the Guam clan, was from the Philippines. And, yet, there are virtually no Carbullidos in the Philippines.

There, are, however people with surnames very close in spelling to Carbullido in both the Philippines and Spain with just one letter being different. We can thus assume, and with some confidence, that Carbullido is just a variation of the original Spanish name and, since spelling was so casual and inconsistent in the old days, the name was spelled Carbullido on Guam.

That original Spanish name is CARBALLIDO.

THE TOWNS OF CARBALLIDO IN SPAIN

There are two tiny villages in Spain called Carballido, but they are in the same area. In fact, they are just 15 miles apart, give or take.

To distinguish the two towns with the same name, the village patron's name is attached. One is San Martiño de Carballido and the other is Santa María de Carballido. They are both in the Province of Lugo in the region of Galicia in Spain and they are both tiny. Neither village has more than 50 inhabitants. In fact, the villages are disappearing as only old people live there and their grandchildren have moved to bigger towns and cities.

The towns of Carballido in Spain lie in a region of Spain called Galicia, at the northwestern corner of the country.

In fact, a Chamorro Carbullido was attending some event in the US mainland and, in the elevator, a Spaniard said to him, "I know where your name comes from!" and told him about the little village of Carballido in Spain.

FROM VILLAGE NAME TO FAMILY NAME

Marga, pictuted above, is one of 1,752 people (since the last statistics) with the last name Carballido in Spain. Most of the people named Carballido in Spain come from Galicia, the region where the towns called Carballido are located.

As people began to choose family names for themselves, many chose the names of the towns, cities and villages they were from. We have many of them in Spanish and from them the Chamorros as well. Sigüenza, Tudela, Borja, Baza, and Benavente are names of towns in Spain.

And what does Carballido mean?

The name Carballido is related to many other names that came from the same roots, especially the name Carballo or Carvallo, which is even more popular in Spain and Latin America. The word means "a place full of oak trees."

A CHANGE OF ONE LETTER

IT'S CARBELLIDO IN THE PHILIPPINES

And then, when the Spaniards conquer the Philippines, we now see a name Carbellido, with just one letter changed from Carballido. You don't find any Carbullidos, even though Andrés was from there.

People didn't have the same fixation with EXACT SPELLING as we have today. Small differences didn't bother them. Even Juan de la Cruz sometimes wrote his name : JUAN CRUZ or JUAN DE LA CRUS. It didn't bother anyone. They knew who he was no matter the small difference in spelling.

The name LIZAMA, for example, is originally LEZAMA, a village in Spain. But on Guam people, even the Spanish priests, spelled it LIZAMA. No big deal to them. Chamorros spell it PANGELINAN, but Filipinos spell it PANGILINAN, and the PANGELINANS on the Marianas trace their ancestry to the PANGILINANS of Pampanga, the Philippines. No big deal. Some Chamorros of the past spelled it TOVEZ, and other spelled it TOVES, because in the Spanish spoken in the Marianas, S and Z sound the same.

Even today, John is spelled Jhon, Jon, Dzon, Djon and many other ways because people like variety or to be different. Exact, uniform spelling is not everyone's concern.

In the Philippines, there are today 642 people named CARBELLIDO. I wouldn't be surprised if Andrés Carbullido is from this same family many years ago, just spelled with a one-letter difference.

KÅNTA : LUCILLE

 

Larry Saralu was singing about marital break-ups since the 1970s.

One of his more famous songs was a Chamorro version of the 1977 Kenny Rogers hit "Lucille."

LYRICS

Annai un dingu i gima’

(when you left the house)

Ni sikiera un fånge’ notisia

(you didn't even write a note)

Na para un hånao i che'lu-ho. (1)

(that you were leaving, my sister.)

Hihot yo’ kaduko, esta hu aliligao hao gi besino.

(I was close to going crazy, I was even looking for you at the neighbor's.)

Pues hu nangga i famagu'on

(So I waited for the children)

Para u fan måtto ginen eskuela

(to come back from school)

Ya puede siña ma tungo’ hao malak måno.

(and maybe they'd know where you went.)

Ya ayo ha’ ilek-ñiha i ma didingu hao gi gima’

(And all they said was you were leaving the house)

Na un preprensa i magagu-mo.

(and you were ironing your clothes.)

Ai na ora para un dingu yo’ Lucille.

(What a time to leave me Lucille.)

Benti åños i tiempo-ta desde ke i umakamo’-ta

(We've had twenty years since we got married)

Ya ennao para un cho’gue

(and that's what you're going to do)

I para un dingu yo’ på'go Lucille.

(to leave me now Lucille.)

Humålom yo’ gi apusento (2)

(I went into the bedroom)

Ya hu sodda’ i aparadot-mo

(and I found your closet)

Na atbietto yan gåsgagas.

(open and cleaned.)

Tåya’ un na’ sopbla, i magågo ni ti un dopbla

(You left nothing behind of the clothes you didn't fold)

Yan palo alåhas.

(and some jewelry.)

Hahasso ha’ i che’lu-ho na manguaiya yo’ nu hågo

(Remember my sister that I love you)

Sa’ hågo i sineda’-ho gof mames.

(Because you are the one I sweetly found.)

I famagu'on gi oriyå-ho ma toktok i sinturå-ho

(The children around me hugged my waist)

Ya sige de manånges.

(and kept crying.)

Thanks to Rose Treltas for helping me with the lyrics.

NOTES

(1) People of equal standing can call each other brother or sister, even if they're married. One wouldn't call someone higher or lower in status your brother or sister.

(2) The apusento is the private section of a home, where non-family members wouldn't go unless invited. The sleeping quarters were in the apusento, although some family members, especially the children, slept in the sala or living room on the floor on woven mats (guåfak). The såla was a public space where visitors could be.

LARRY SARALU

FAMILIA : ATAO / ATTAO

 

ATAO is apparently an indigenous Chamorro name and a family with roots in Tepungan, which is a part of Piti. A branch moved from Tepungan to Saipan and they spell it Attao. Priests in the old days spelled the same name in different ways, according to their own thinking, and people just went along with it. Many people couldn't read or write, anyway, in those days, so whatever way the official spelled it was just fine with them.

My wager is that Atao is an indigenous name for more than one reason. First of all, it is generally true that the non-Chamorros who settled on Guam in the late 1600s and in the early 1700s almost all settled in Hagåtña, many of them marrying Chamorro wives. It's in Hagåtña that you find the Spanish Dueñas and Camacho and the Filipino Pangelinan and Manibusan. In the rest of Guam, from Aniguak to Pågo to Inalåhan and all the rest, indigenous names dominate overwhelmingly; Babauta, Taigima', Na'mase' and all the others. In the 1758 Census we find a Pedro Atao in Hågat and a Toribio Atao in Tepungan, married to María Gupotña (also an indigenous name; gupot meaning "feast.") Thanks to Bernard Punzalan for confirming the 1758 Census information.

Sure there are people named Atao in the Philippines but so there are in Peru, as well. These are more than likely coincidences and there are probably differences in the pronunciation of Atao in these places.

Furthermore, the prefix A- and the root word tao are very Chamorro.

As far back as 1848, we find in the Spanish documents a man named Bernardino Atao, who is a Cabeza de Barangay (neighborhood leader) in the village of Asan. Asan is not far from Tepungan and people from both villages sometimes moved between them.

In the same year, but this time in Tepungan, is a man named Dionisio Atao who is the Alguacil (sheriff or bailiff) of that village. We don't know if Bernardino and Dionisio are related, but there's a good chance they are.

MARIANO ATAO

At any rate, what we can say is that all the Ataos/Attaos of Guam and Saipan today are the descendants of a man named MARIANO ATAO who was married to CEFERINA CHARGUALAF. We can assume they lived in Tepungan because all their children lived in Tepungan.

From what I can tell, from the old records, MARIANO and CEFERINA had four children; three daughters and only one son.

Since it is the son who hopefully has male heirs to continue the family name, I'll mention him first. He was PEDRO CHARGUALAF ATAO. According to the 1897 Guam Census, he was born around 1863, but these dates are sometimes unreliable and can be off a few years.

PEDRO CHARGUALAF ATAO

Pedro married María Pérez Megofña, most likely from Asan where that family comes from.

Pedro, too, had mostly daughters and only one son, Vicente. It is Vicente Megofña Atao who left Guam sometime after 1899 and settled in Saipan. There his name was usually spelled Vicente Magofña Attao, and his descendants in Saipan spell it so.

Pedro and María's daughters were Ana, María, Rosa and Consolación.

Ordinarily, daughters eventually marry and their children carry the father's name. But when a woman has a child outside of marriage, the child goes by the single mother's name.

This was the case with Ana Megofña Atao, daughter of Pedro and María. She had a son Juan in 1914 who married Josefa Champaco Jesús. Juan and Josefa had two daughters but only one son, George, carrying forward the name Atao, but he eventually moved to the States.

MARIANO AND CEFERINA'S THREE DAUGHTERS

Ana married Vicente Salas Nededog. This family settled eventually in Vicente's home village of Hågat, where his branch of Nededogs are known as familian Atao, on account of his wife Ana.

Josefa married Juan Megofña Pérez of Asan. He was the blood brother of María Pérez Megofña who married Pedro Chargualaf Atao. So a brother and sister married a sister and brother. That often happened in Chamorro society back then; two siblings marrying two siblings.

Concepción married Mariano Salas Cruz.

SAIPAN : VICENTE MAGOFÑA ATTAO

When Vicente moved from Guam to Saipan he married Natividad Cabrera San Nicolás in Saipan, the daughter of Juan San Nicolás and María Taisague Cabrera.

Their son Pedro San Nicolás Attao married Ninfa Camacho Torres. 

Their other son José San Nicolás Attao married Rosario Mendiola Cabrera. José was elected to the Saipan Congress in 1954.

Brothers Pedro and José continued the Attao line in Saipan.

Former Saipan Congressman José SN Attao and wife Rosario Cabrera

(photo courtesy of Chris Attao Concepción)

Vicente and Natividad also had daughters. Isabel married Ignacio Manahane Benavente. Maria married Alejandro Quitano Bermudes. Margarita married George Cruz Dueñas. Carmen married Cesario Taitano Concepción. Teresita never married.

Some of the Attaos in Saipan moved to Guam over the years. Right after the war, when travel between Guam and Saipan was more frequent since both were under US jurisdiction, a number of Saipan Attaos came to Guam and resided at first with their Guam Atao relatives. Some made Guam their permanent home.

Today, there are no Ataos on the Guam voter registration rolls, but there are a few Attaos registered to vote on Guam.

And just as George Atao moved to the States, some Attaos also reside today in the mainland.

NO NEW YEAR'S EVE

 

Prior to the establishment of a Catholic mission and Spanish government in the Marianas, there was no western calendar in the Marianas as we have today. We're not even sure if our ancestors marked the passing of an old year and how many past years had gone by.

But when the Marianas did enter western time-keeping, the Marianas were on the eastern side of the Date Line, as can be seen in the German map of the Date Line above.

Notice that the Philippines was also on the eastern side of the Date Line in the map, and that explains it all.

When both the Marianas and the Philippines first came under Spanish rule, power flowed from Spain then to Mexico and then to the Marianas/Philippines. Since Mexico is east of the Date Line, so were the Philippines and the Marianas.

But then Mexico became independent of Spain in 1821 and contact between Mexico and the Philippines/Marianas dwindled to barely anything.

NARCISO CLAVERIA

Governor-General of the Philippines in 1844

The Spanish Governor-General of the Philippines, Narciso Claveria, decided to place the Philippines and the Marianas (which were under his authority) on the Asian, or western, side of the Date Line since our islands had more contact with Asia now.

NEWSPAPER ARTICLE FROM 1899 EXPLAINS THE STORY

In order to achieve this, Claveria decided that December 31, 1844 would not exist on the calendar. December 30, 1844 would be immediately followed by January 1, 1845 and the Philippines and Marianas would now be one day ahead of Mexico, the United States and Hawaii.

So, December 31, 1844, or New Year's Eve that year, never happened in the Marianas.

FIRST DAY OF AGINÅTDO

The Spanish missionaries in the Marianas brought with them the custom of the Misan Aginåtdo, which are Masses celebrated before dawn nine days before Christmas. Thus they begin on December 16.

In Saipan, they have the custom of singing this particular song on the first day of Aginåtdo, or December 16.

Since the birth of Jesus all began with the Annunciation by the Archangel Gabriel to Mary that she was chosen by God to be the Mother of Jesus, Aginåtdo begins with this event in mind. The words of this song spell it out.

The melody, by the way, is used in more than one Chamorro hymn. This is the same melody, for example, as the hymn to Santa Ana, the grandmother of Jesus and the mother of Mary entitled "Sainan i Bithen Maria."

Pot tinago' i Saina-ta i Atkånghet San Gabriel

(By order of our Lord the Archangel Saint Gabriel)

måtto guato gi una bithen ni eståba Nasaret. (1)

(came to a virgin who was in Nazareth.)

Annai måtto gi me'nå-ña, "Åbe," ilek-ña i ma tågo',

(When he came before her, "Ave," the messenger said,)

"Maria, bula hao ni gråsia, si Yu'us gaige giya hågo."

("Mary, you are full of grace, God is with you.")

"Un fañågo, mungnga manman, i Nana' libren i taotao;

("You will give birth, don't be amazed, to the Savior of humanity;)

i remedio para todos yan i anite todo espånto."

(the remedy for all and the demons will be alarmed.")

I bithen i anghet umoppe, "Ti hu hulat kumomprende;

(The virgin answered the angel, "I am unable to understand;)

boton-måme 'an i asaguå-ho i ginasgas para siempre." (2)

(it is our vow, my husband and I, to be chaste always.")

Ya manoppe i ma tågo', "Siempre bithen ha' un såga;

(And the emissary answered, "You will surely remain a virgin;)

i Mesias un fañågo, ni esta åpmam na ma nangga.

(you will give birth to the Messiah, whom they have awaited for a long time already.)

Oppe yo' guse', Señora, sa' ma nanangga 'u gi langet. (3)

(Answer me quickly, Lady, for they await me in heaven.)

På'go na puenge nai gloria para todos i man ånghet."

(For tonight is glory for all the angels.")

Si Maria pues manoppe, "Sangåne i tinakhilo'-ña

(So Mary then answered, "Tell His highness)

na gi uttimon esklabå-ña u fa'tinas i pinto'-ña."

(that in the last of His servants His will shall be done.")

Ma hungok todo gi langet, "Maria, bula hao ni gråsia."

(All in heaven heard, "Mary, you are full of grace.")

Ma repite ni man ånghet, "Åbe, Nånan i Saina-ta."

(The angels repeated, "Hail, Mother of our Lord.")

NOTES

(1) In Chamorro, the L in Gabriel is pronounced as a T, Ga - bri - et, so it rhymes with Nasaret, in English Nazareth.

(2) Yan, meaning "and," is shortened to 'an.

(3) Another shortcut. Yo' (me) is shortened to 'u.

HINENGGEN MAN ÅMKO'

 

Mungnga umo'mak yanggen masahahalom ha' hao trabia.

Don't shower if you're still sweaty.

When we were kids playing in the streets, hitting empty tin cans down the street with sticks, or playing catch and racing each other, when we'd come home some of us would want to take a shower right away because we were so sweaty from our games.

But some saina, often the nånan biha or grandmother, would forbid us to. "Cha'-mo umo'omak sa' masahahalom ha' hao trabia!" ("Don't you dare shower because you're still sweaty!")

We'd have to dry off before they'd let us shower. So, we'd take off our sweaty shirts and just keep our shorts on and it didn't take too long to dry off. They'd never allow us to dry off standing in front of a fan, either. 

The fear was we'd get sick if we took a shower while we were still sweating.

Is there a scientific basis?

Although science does not say showering when still being sweaty will kill you or make you sick, medical people and health experts generally advise people to cool down before showering after they've sweated from playing sports or exercising. Water, either hot or cold, will have an effect on the body, one's heart rate and body temperature, so it's best to subject the body to cold or hot water when the body is in its natural rest state.

Others say if you take a hot shower while still sweaty, your body still needs to sweat in order to cool down the internal organs, so you'll end up sweating after the shower anyway. Wait, then, till your body stops sweating and then take a shower.

Still...

I think or man åmko' had other concerns when it came to showering while still sweaty.

They really believed you could get sick if you did. 

My Filipino friends tell me they had the very same belief. Tropical people think alike. Parents believed that showering right away would shock the child's body. Remember that Filipinos generally shower with cold water, just as almost every Chamorro did before the war and even after. The body needs to cool down, both Filipinos and Chamorros believe(d), before the body can properly deal with the water from showering.

FAMILIA : TAIJITO

 

The Taijito family history is pretty straightforward. The majority of Taijitos are from Asan, and I suspect that even the few Taijitos found in Hagåtña in Spanish times were originally from Asan.

Since the family is too large in number, I will just identify the males who were able to establish lines that kept the family name going.

Sometimes a female Taijito who had children out of wedlock produced children who carried forward the name Taijito, and these I will also include.

LUÍS MAAÑAO TAIJITO

Luís, from Asan, was married to Fermina Aflleje Taitano. They had two sons, Francisco and José.

Francisco married Rosalía Pérez Cruz, the daughter of Felipe and Margarita. They had a son Vicente who had moved to the US before World War II. He registered for the draft in New York City in 1940. He does not seem to have produced children and his whereabouts disappear.

José married Vicenta Santos Salas, the daughter of José and María and had several children but only one was a male who carried forward the Taijito name. He was Francisco, and he married Asunción Santos Muña, the daughter of Gregorio and Josefa. Eventually they moved to Hågat and raised their children there.

So from Luís Maañao Taijito of Asan came the Muña Taijitos based in Hågat, and their line still continues to this day.

RITA TORRES TAIJITO

Another Asan Taijito was Rita, whose parentage is unknown at this time.

Before Rita married Felipe Santos Aflleje, she had a daughter named María Taijito. María in turn had a number of children out of wedlock. At least three daughters (Vicenta, Consolación and Manuela) married and had numerous children, but carrying their fathers' surname. No sons of María seem to have fathered children to carry forward the Taijito name.

And so the Taijito name gradually vanished as a last name from its birthplace of Asan, though many Asan families obviously have Taijito blood in them.

APOLINARIA MEGOFÑA TAIJITO

Apolinaria is a Hagåtña woman in the 1897 Census, but having two very Asan names - Taijito and Megofña - I wouldn't be surprised if she originally came from Asan and then moved to the capital city.

Although married to José Aguon, Apolinaria had two children out of wedlock.

A daughter Ana Taijito married Severino Ricardo Apuron, so the entire Apuron clan are descendants of Ana, the daughter of Apolinaria.

A son Mamerto married Ana Mendiola Benavente, familian Lile'. And so now we have the Benavente Taijitos. Mamerto moved up to Machånao in the Dededo municipality before the war. They had one son Jesús.

FRANCISCO SALAS TAIJITO

I came across the interesting life of Francisco Salas Taijito, the son of José Taitano Taijito and Vicenta Salas Santos. Francisco comes from the Luís Maañao Taijito clan of Asan, though he moved to Hågat. He also went by the nickname Frank.

Frank was well-known back in the day for being chef for Guam's postwar Governors. He served them all in the 1950 and 60s, many of them American Governors appointed by the US President.

Frank wasn't just a good cook of Chamorro food. He could cook pretty much anything he could find a recipe for. Once found, the recipe stayed in his head. When he made chow mein for Governor Elvidge, who had very sophisticated tastes, Frank made his own noodles. When Governor Daniels blew in from Texas with wife and children in hand, Frank made hominy grits for breakfast. Frank made soups, salads, main courses, desserts and pastries. Each Governor had their own eating habits, and Frank easily adjusted to each one; from those partial to gourmet food to those who were satisfied with just toast and coffee in the morning.

He not only cooked for the Governor and family but also for their dinner guests, the frequency and amount of them depending on the Governor.

Frank got his start cooking for a living when PanAm hired him in 1937 to cook meals for the China Clipper seaplanes that landed in Apra Harbor before the war. He spent just two days in the Navy, the shortest stint he believed on record, and was released by the Navy to start working for PanAm. Besides cooking ground meals, Frank flew on the planes to cook in-flight meals. His plane was at Midway when the war broke out, so he wasn't on Guam for the war. Frank passed away in 1993 at the age of 85.

FRANCISCO TAIJITO WITH SAW IN HAND ON RIGHT

putting up booths for the Hågat parish fiesta in 1967

Father Donan Hickey on left

THE MEANING OF TAIJITO

We can't be too sure what Taijito means because the second part of the name, HUTO, can mean two different things. It can mean either lice or the seed of the dukduk (a kind of breadfruit) tree.

So Taijito can mean either "without lice" or "without dukduk seeds." Although the thought of lice isn't pleasant, remember that the name means WITHOUT lice, and that's a good thing.

For all we know, there could have been another meaning of huto which we don't know today.

There is another Chamorro word huto', which means "to spread," like spreading a cloth on a table. But huto' has a glota, which is not present in Taijito.

Our ancestors came up with unusual (for us) names. Just think of Taimanglo (without wind) or Taitano (without land).

I DEFFE' NA SAKKE

 

Ocho åños ha' edåt-ña si Miget ya ma gacha' gi halom i kuåtton Tun Venancio, ha kekesakke masea håfa i siña.

(Miget was just eight years old and he was caught inside Tun Venancio's bedroom, trying to steal whatever he could.)

"Hei!" umessalao si Tun Venancio, ya malågo si Miget ya ha eskapåye.

("Hay!" Tun Venancio cred out, and Miget ran away and escaped.)

Lao åntes de malågo, ha baba i pachot-ña si Miget sa' ma espånta ya annok na doffe'.

(But before he ran, he opened his mouth being caught off guard and it showed he was toothless.)

Humånao si Tun Venancio guato gi polisia ya annai ma faisen si Tun Venancio kao siña ha identifika håye i patgon ilek-ña, "Hokkok ha' hu tungo' na doffe'."

(Tun Venancio went to the police and when they asked him if he could identify the kid, he said, "All I know is that he was toothless.")

Pues ilek-ña i polisia, "Pues ta rekohe todo i famagu'on ya ta li'e' håye doffe'."

(So the policeman said, "Then let's gather all the kids and see who is toothless.")

Eståba si Miget gi papa' i bentånan i polisia ya ha ekkungok håfa ilek-ña i polisia.

(Miget was under the policeman's window and listened to what he said.)

Malågo si Miget guato gi amigu-ña as Juan ni acha lokka' yan guiya. 

(He ran to his friend Juan who was as tall as him.)

"Juan! Juan! Pot fabot, ta na' åttilong i un nifen-mo ya un kado' doffe' hao."

("Juan! Juan! Please let's blacken your one tooth and pretend to be toothless.")

Pues ma chåchak i trongkon papåya ya ma chule' i chigo'-ña pues ma nå'ye åpo. Ma palai este gi un nifen-ña si Juan ya ma na' åttilong pues annai man ma ågang todo i famagu'on ya ma baba i pachot-ñiha para u ma li'e', ma sodda' na dos na påtgon doffe', era si Miget yan si Juan.

(So they cut the papaya tree and collected its sap and added ashes to it. They smeared this on one of Juan's teeth and made it black so when they called all the kids and opened their mouths to see, they found two toothless kids, which were Miget and Juan.)

Ilek-ña i polisia gi as Tun Venancio, "Dos na doffe' guaha ya ilek-mo na uno ha' na påtgon humåtme i gimå'-mo. Pot i ti siña un identifika håye fuera de doffe' gue', debe de hu sotta este dos."

(The policeman told Tun Venancio, "There are two toothless kids and you said only one entered your house. Since you can't identify the kid except that he was toothless, I have to let these two go.")

Ya taiguennao humuyong na ti ma kastiga si Miget.

(And that's how Miget ended up not being punished.)

HINENGGEN MAN ÅMKO' : YANGGEN MAN ATTOK I MANNOK

 

Yanggen man attok i mannok siha annai u'uchan, siempre u dinira i ichan para un råto ha'.

Lao yanggen ti man attok, siempre u uchan tolot dia.

If it's raining and the chickens hide, the rain will last just a short time.

If they don't hide, it will rain the whole day.

It's almost as if the chickens are telling us, "If it's going to keep raining and raining all day, there's no use hiding. Just stay in the rain."

But it could be that the rain softens up the ground, allowing the chickens to get at worms and bugs hiding in the soil more easily. Sometimes, with the soil loosened by the rain, the worms just come out of hiding. A rainy day, therefore, can mean good hunting for the chickens.

The feathers of the chicken do help a lot to keep the chicken warm in the rain, but, unlike a duck, the feathers are not water-proof. The chickens will want to get out of the rain at some point. But the good hunting might keep them in the rain for part of the day.

LAST WILL IN CHAMORRO

 

In 1927, a prominent and wealthy man decided to write his last will and testament as he was not in good health and wanted to be prepared for death. He wrote his will in Chamorro, which lets us see the kind of Chamorro being spoken in Guam in the 1920s, 28 years into Guam's slow but sure Americanization.

The man was born around 1872, and his father was a very prominent man on Guam in the mid 1800s, as his father before him had been a Spanish government official who fathered children with a Chamorro lady.

I have changed the spelling to my own spelling more familiar to people today, and I am leaving out last names because the family's current descendants may not appreciate this will becoming public knowledge. An English translation follows each paragraph and explanatory notes come at the end.

Guåho si José ____ ____, 55 åños edåt-ho yan taotao este iya Hagåtña, låhen _____ yan _____. I numeron sedulås-ho 3313. Malångo yo’ lao mamaolek ha’ todabia i hinaso-ko. Hu fa’tinas i uttimo na disposision-ho ni todo i guinaha-ho, taiguine mo’na :

I am José ____ ____, I am 55 years old and a resident here in Hagåtña, the son of _____ and _____. My cédula is number 3313. I am sickly but my mind is still well. I make my final disposal of all my assets as follows :

UNO : Guåho sottero yo’ ya tåya’ tinatte-ko pat patgon-ho ni mañaina-ho sino solamente mañe’lo yan sobrino siha.

ONE : I am single and I have no descendants or children nor parents except only siblings and nieces and nephews.

DOS : Desde ke hu tutuhon macho’cho’ asta på’go hu sodda’ este siha mo’na na propiedåt :

TWO : Ever since I began working till now I find the following properties :

(a) Un guma’ teha yan i solåt-ña ni gaige gi Calle Esperanza, barrion San Ramón, numero 1299, na hu adkiere påtte pot erensia ginen i mañaina-ho yan påtte pot finahån-ho gi mañe’lu-ho. One house with tiled roof and its plot which is on Esperanza Street, in the barrio (district) of San Ramón, number 1299, which I acquired partly through inheritance from my parents and partly from my purchase from my siblings.

(b) Un fangualu’an giya Pa’åsan hurisdiksion Hagåtña na hu adkiere lokkue’ pot erensia ginen i mañaina-ho. A farm in Pa’åsan, jurisdiction of Hagåtña, which I acquired also through inheritance from my parents. 

(c) Un paståhe giya Makåhna hurisdiksion Hagåtña yan trenta na guaka ni man ma påpåsto guihe. Este na tåno’ finahån-ho gi as Juan ____, as Joaquin ____ yan otros mås. A pasture in Makåhna, jurisdiction of Hagåtña, with thirty heads of cattle which are pastured there. This land is my purchase from Juan ____, Joaquin ____ and others.

(d) Guaha lokkue’ ga’-ho singko na båkan karabao yan dos na toriyon karabao na man ma sosotta gi paståhen Luís ____ giya Bubulao. Guaha lokkue’ un båkan guaka na ha popoksai si Joaquin ____; un bakiyan guaka na ha popoksai si José ____ yan tres båkan karabao, i uno ha popoksai si Juan ____, i otro ha popoksai i pastot-ho as Juan ____ ya i otro ha popoksai si Vicente ____ yan un lecheran guaka na gai patgon. I have also five female carabao and two young male carabao which are loose on the pasture on Luís ____ in Bubulao. There is also a cow being raised by Joaquin ____; a heifer being raised by José ____ and three female carabao, one being raised by Juan, the other by my herdsman Juan ____ and the other by Vicente ____ and a dairy cow with its calf (or is pregnant?).

(e) Guaha lokkue’ dos karetå-ho, i uno troso i otro råyo. I also have two carts, one with solid wheels and the other with spoked wheels.

(f) Guaha lokkue’ iyo-ko na piano. I also have a piano.

TRES : Hu deklåra na tåya’ ni uno hu didibe ya ni uno dumidibe yo’.

THIRD : I declare that I am in debt to no one at all and no one is in debt to me.

KUÅTTRO : I disposision-ho ni este siha i propiedåt-ho ni esta hu sångan taiguine mo’na :

FOURTH : The disposal of my properties already described is as follows :

(1) I gima' teha yanggen måtai yo’ para si Marikitan che’lu-ho. The tiled-roof house should I die is for my sister Marikita.

(2) I tano’ giya Pa’åsan, i paståhe giya Makåhna yan i guakas siha guihe yan i singko båka yan dos toriyon karabao ni man gaige gi paståhen Bubulao para i sobrinu-ho as Enrique ____ kon la obligasion de i kubre todo i gåsto pot guåho durånte todo i malangu-ho yan i gåston i entieru-ho yanggen måtai yo’. Pot si akåso homlo’ yo’ nu este na malangu-ho ya esta yo’ siña macho’cho’ komo åntes, obligao yo’ na hu na’na’lo gue’ ni todo i gaston-ña pot guåho. The land in Pa’åsan, the pasture in Makåhna and the cattle there and the five female and two young male carabao which are in the Bubulao pasture are for my nephew Enrique ____ with the obligation to cover all the expenses during my illness and the expenses of my funeral should I die. If I should recover from this illness and I can work as I did before, I am obliged to pay him back all his expenses for me.

(3) I tres båkan karabao, i tres båkan guaka yan un tatneron guaka ni man ma popoksai segun i esta hu sångan guine gi sanhilo’ yan i dos kareta yan i piano para i mañe’lu-ho famalao’an as Marikita, Caridad yan Consuelo. The three female carabao, the three cows and one carabao calf which are being raised in the way I have already stated above and the two carts and piano are for my sisters Marikita, Caridad and Consuelo.

(4) Hu nombra i primu-ho yan amigu-ho as José ____ para atbaseå-ho para ke, yanggen måtai yo’, guiya u dispone todo i propiedåt-ho konfotme i malago’-ho guine na testamento. I name my cousin and friend José ____ as my executor so that, should I die, he will dispose all my properties in accordance with my wishes here in this testament.

Hu deklåra na este ha’ i uniko na testamento fina’tinås-ho asta på’go na ha’åne. I declare that this is the only testament that I have written till the present.

 

Ya este na testamento hu suplika i sobrinu-ho as José ____ para u tugi’e yo’ sa’ chatsaga yo’ hu tuge’ pot i malangu-ho ya todo este siha na disposision-ho humuyong ginen i pachot-ho yan i minalago’-ho, sin hu ma su’ok pat hu ma chachalåne, ya bai hu fitma este na testamento gi me’nan i testigo siha ni i hu na’ fan ma agånge para u ha hungok i disposision-ho guine na testamento, guine giya Hagåtña på’go gi dia ocho de enero gi mit nobesientos beinte i siette na såkkan.

And this testament I requested my nephew José ____ to write for me because I am unable due to my illness to write it and all of these instructions of mine have come from me verbally and from my will, without me being pressured or influenced, and I will sign this testament before the witnesses whom I have called to hear of the instructions in this testament, here in Hagåtña on today’s date of January 8, 1927.

NOTES

(1) The testator uses some Spanish loan words which are hardly used today. Atbasea (Spanish albacea) means executor, as of a will. The sedulas (Spanish cédula) was a personal identification paper. He also uses phrases straight out of Spanish such as "kon la obligasión de" (with the obligation to).

(2) He uses the original word todabía instead of trabia (in Saipan, tarabia), meaning "still, not yet." Monsignor Calvo (born 1915) always said todabía as well.

(3) The man has a piano, a rarity among Chamorros at the time. It indicates he is a man of above-average financial means (as also evidenced by his properties and cattle) and cultural affinity with the West.

(4) This man's last will differs from older last wills in one very noticeable way - the absence of any religious language. The man was Catholic, and I am not suggesting he wasn't a practicing one, but he does not include any religious language at all, not even about his funeral, whereas older last wills were very religious in tone. They almost always began right away with a profession of the person's Catholic faith; this was often the very first line of the last will. The person went on to express how they intended to die a loyal Catholic, obedient to the Catholic faith till death, and included clear instructions that he or she be given a Catholic funeral and sometimes even made provision to pay for the exact kind of funeral services they wanted, or how many Masses they wanted to be offered for them.

(5) Place names. The man's real estate assets were all centered in what we now call the Agaña Heights area. He mentions two places : Pa'åsan and Makåhna. I have never heard of a place called Makåhna, only the mountain by that name. A mountain is hardly a place for a pasture, but maybe he means the slopes of Mount Makåhna near Agaña Heights or maybe the backside of the mountain, which isn't a steep climb.

PA'ÅSAN AND MAKÅHNA

In addition, he mentions a place called Bubulao, where he didn't own land but where one of the landowners there allowed him to pasture some of his animals, maybe for a fee or a share in the meat if and when the animal was butchered. Bubulao was prime pasture land and some prominent Hagåtña people owned land in Bubulao and raised cattle there, sometimes hundreds of heads of cattle.

Bubulao is somewhat remote. One has to drive from Malojloj inland to the foot of the mountains.

BUBULAO