GONE FISHING

Why the piao (bamboo)?

These guys were going fishing, and using the piao as fishing poles.

THREE HALVES

This is Ray.  His heritage is made up of three halves.

WORDS I LEARNED IN LUTA

On a recent trip to Luta, I learned the following words in casual conversation.  These words are heard either mainly or exclusively in Luta.  Some are Spanish, some are Chamorro.

Malahente.  Something of a trouble-maker, disobedient, rebellious, discourteous.  What we would also call disatento.  The word is Spanish, "mala gente," "bad person."

Tammong.  Big, as in dångkulo.

Fasisa.  Same as tammong, dångkulo.  Big!

Po'yet.  Pee-wee.  Small.

Hatgo.  To go into the jungle looking for dågo, nika, fadang  (foods) and so forth.

GERMAN INFLUENCES IN LUTA

Luta (Rota), like the rest of the Northern Marianas, was under German administration from 1899 till 1914, when the Japanese took it over in World War I.

But, unlike Saipan,where there were never more than just a handful of German residents, there were even less Germans living in Luta.  For a lot of the time, just one German lived there - the Catholic priest.  His name was Påle' Corbinian, in Spanish and Chamorro Corbiniano.  The Japanese allowed him to stay in Luta till about the beginning of 1919.

Påle' Corbiniano left some influences on Luta.  His are really the only German touches that ever lasted on Luta.

He built this small chapel, under the title of Our Lady of Lourdes, in a place in Luta called Påtten Gogue.  It's the only German-era structure still around, and it is still used by the faithful.

The interior of the Kapiya (Chapel)

Påle' Corbiniano, as priest, could influence the choice of names when children were baptized, with a decidedly German slant.

I'm sure Påle' Corbiniano was happy this man, which he himself baptized in 1915, was christened with his name.  Corbiniano Ayuyu's son grew up to be a priest himself.

Walburga, born and baptized during Påle' Corbiniano's tenure, also sports a nice German name.

As does Anscar.

There was also a Fritz Mendiola, one of two Luta Chamorros sent to Guam in World War II as interpreters.  It's true that Fritz was born just a year after Påle' Corbiniano left Luta, but the German influence lingered.

"Fritz" is a shortened form of the German name Friedrich (our English Frederick).  Fritz moved to Tinian after the war and there he is buried.

Structures, personal names and several church songs (which I still have to track down) are all part of the small German legacy left on Luta, all thanks to Påle' Corbiniano.

TODAY'S CHAMORRO WORD : LÅHE

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LÅHE : male, son

Låhe na påtgon.  A male child.

Ai lahi-ho.  Oh, my son.

I lahi-mo as Jose.  Your son Jose.

I lalåhe.  The men.

Bula taotao, lao puro ha' lalåhe.  There are (were) many people, but they are (were) all men.

Håye gai' lahe este?  Whose son is this?

LAI

The expression lai is a contraction of låhe.  So, it isn't strictly correct to say lai to a woman.

Håfa, lai?  What's up, man?

More than biological son

Låhe can be applied to males who are not one's biological sons, but who have a son-like relationship with someone older.


So, there used to be a custom for the village priest, sometimes, to have a young man live as a companion and worker in the parish church.  He was called the låhen Påle', the priest's son.

Or, supervisors at work, or businessmen, sometimes called the young men working under them their sons or lalåhe.

Tågo' i lahi-mo ya u yute' i basula.  Tell your "son" (employee) to throw out the trash.

Austronesian Connections

Låhe is connected with a number of languages who are part of the Austronesian family, which stretches from Madagascar near Africa all the way to Hawaii.

"MALE"

CHAMORRO	LÅHE
TAGALOG	LALAKI
ILOCANO	LALAKI
INDONESIAN	LAKI-LAKI
PANGASINAN	LAKI

UN DIA, UN DIA : KÅNTAN ENTIERO GINEN SAIPAN

This funeral song from Saipan is sure to get the emotions going.

Un dia ta hungok u ma kånta

(One day we will hear it sung)

ginen i Satbadot-ta

(from our Savior)

ta fanohge gi me'nan i Saina as Jesus

(we will stand before Jesus the Lord)

pot todo i bidå-ta siha

(for all the things we did)

guine gi tano'.

(here on earth.)

Un dia, un dia, un dia, un dia

(One day, one day, one day, one day)

Un dia, un dia ta fan hita gi langet

(one day, one day, we will be together in heaven)

as Jesus i Sainan todos

(with Jesus the Lord of all)

guato gi tronon i Saina-ta.

(there at the throne of our Lord.)

LATEST JOKES FROM SAIPAN

---What do you call a group of Carolinian boys?
---Aghurub (a guroup).

---What do you call a group of Filipino boys?
---SiniGANG.

Explain a joke, kill a joke

Aghurub was a Carolinian chief who is revered as the pioneer leader in the settlement of Carolinians on Saipan around the year 1815.  Every year, Carolinians honor him on Mañagåha Island where he is believed to be buried.

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Chief Aghurub holding the cane and hat given him as signs of authority by the Spaniards

YOU KNOW YOU'RE CHAMORRO WHEN...

There's a difference between SOLID FOOD and non-solid food.

Jose : Juan, ti para un falak i gipot?

Juan : Håfa na klåsen gupot?  Puro ha' sandwich yan soup.

Jose : Åhe', che'lo!  Para solid food!

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SOLID FOOD

These are NOT solid food...

themixedstew.blogspot.com

SOUP

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SANDWICHES

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FINGER FOODS, SNACKS

HINENGGEN I MAN ­ÅMKO' : YANGGEN TODO KÅTMA



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 Ilek-ñiha i man åmko' : Yanggen todo silensio, tåya' månglo', kåtma - ya ma tutuhon man haohao i ga'lågo siha, señåt na para u guaha måt tiempo.  Siña linao pat otro.  Ensegidas man tinago' todo i taotao guma' gi as Nånan Biha para u fandimo ya u fan manåyuyut.  Ma songge, lokkue', i ma bendise na påtma.

If the air is still, all is calm and there is complete silence, and the dogs start to bark for no apparent reason, there will be an earthquake or some other disturbance.  That's when grand ma tells everyone in the house to kneel down and pray.  And blessed palms are burned.

Si no hay brisa ni ruido, y todo el entorno está en perfecta tranquilidad, pero de golpe empiezan a ladrar los perros, cuídese, porque habrá al poco rato terremoto u otra adversidad.  Toda la familia, por orden de la abuela, se ponen de rodillas y empiezan a rezar, quemando también la palma bendita.

TYPHOONS BEFORE THEY HAD NAMES

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Giving official names to typhoons didn't start until 1945.  And when they first started christening typhoons, they were all given girls' names (a custom started by sailors and navymen who named them after their girl friends), until male names were added in the 1970s. Then, all human names were avoided and typhoons started being named after flowers, or birds or what have you.

So, before that, how did Chamorros label the typhoons that hit our islands?

I know from one source in Saipan that they remembered each particular typhoon by the year it struck.  It was rare for more than one typhoon to hit the islands each year, so tagging them by the year they came was convenient enough.

One particularly bad one that hit Saipan in 1914 was spoken of by the man åmko' even sixty years after the fact.  That's how bad a typhoon it was.  And the man åmko' simply called it the Påkyon Katotse.  The typhoon of '14, meaning 1914.

I wouldn't be surprised if this is how all Chamorros identified each particular typhoon.

But in pre-western times, I wonder how our ancestors called each typhoon, if they did at all?  They didn't count years, as far as we know.  Maybe typhoons back then weren't big deals at all, as things could be easily re-built, and were soon forgotten in ordinary conversation.  But I would assume some typhoons did some pretty long-lasting damage to some crops that was followed by some food shortage, or to landmarks that changed the landscape or planting and fishing areas, and would have been remembered.  So how did they name them?  Curious.

FEEDING THE NEW GOVERNOR

What do you serve, in the year 1939, at a banquet held in honor of the Governor of Guam, US Navy Captain James T. Alexander?

Well, we have a copy of the menu.  The chef for the occasion was J. G. Eustaquio - Chamorro.

MAÑÅHAK on toast.  As an appetizer.

PICKLED PAPAYA. 

SALTED KAKAGUÅTES or peanuts.

MENDIOKA BISCUITS.  Mendioka is tapioca.

FRIED FISH TARAKITO.

LEMMAI FRITTERS.  Breadfruit.

BONELESS LECHON.  A pork roast I suspect.

GREEN KALAMASA STEW.  Squash.

SCALLOP KAMUTE.  Sweet potatoes.

LEMONSITO and LAGUANÅ SHERBET.  Laguanå is sour sop.

GUAM COFFEE.  Yep, we used to grow our own.

Look how much they relied on local ingredients.

TODAY'S CHAMORRO WORD : SIÑA

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SIÑA : able, possible

Kao siña?  Is it possible?

Siña ha'.  It is certainly possible.

Kao siña hao?  Can you?

Ti siña yo'.  I cannot.

Ti siña.  It can't (be done, happen).

Ti siña ma baba.  It can't be opened.

Ti siña ma sångan.  It can't be said.

Ti sumiña.  S/he wasn't able.

Kao siña hao manaitai?  Can you read?

Na' siña.  To make possible.

Ti hu na' siña.  I wasn't able to make it happen.

Sisiña.  Ability.  Power.

Ennao ha' sisiñå-ña.  That's all s/he can (could) do.

I sisiñan i tataotao.  The ability of the body.

Nina' siña.  Power, ability.

Bula nina' siñå-ña.  S/he has great power.

Todo ha' ha na' siña na Yu'us.  Almighty God.

Taimano na chinaddek nai siña.  As fast as possible.

From the Creed in Chamorro

Maså'pet gi papa' i sisiñan Ponsio Pilåto.  He suffered under the power of Pontius Pilate.

KIDNAPPED BY THE DUENDES

A story about a little girl from Agaña Heights who liked to play with what she thought were dolls, but who were duendes who kidnapped her, shrunk her and put her in a little shoe box.

Palao'an : Ginen åntes dos umasagua guaha hagan-ñiha, ya kåda puenge este na påtgon gos ya-ña humugåndo gi Gima'yu'us Agaña Heights lao an humugågåndo fiho ha' chumålek yan kalan taiguihe guaha hugandodo-ña.  Pues un puenge malingo i patgon, lao i duendes hugandodo-ña ya ha konne' i duendes ya ma pega gi kahita, ni dikkike' na kahita, ya ha na' dikkike' i patgon.  Pues humånao i dos åmko' guato gi as Påle', ya ma sangane si Påle' Oskåt.  Ma sodda' i patgon-ñiha lao gaige gi kahitan sapåtos na gos dikkike'.  Si Påle' Oskåt ha tågo' i dos umasagua na u ma chule' i sinturon Sånta Maria gi Gima'yu'us Agaña Heights ya ha na' påkpåk tres biåhe i patgon ya pues dumångkulo i patgon lao ginen i duendes na bånda na kinenne'. 

Guåho : Ya pine'lo-ña i patgon na muñeka.

Palao'an : Na muñeka.  Pine'lo-ña i patgon na hugandodo-ña muñeka.  Ya kåda dia humugågåndo gi oran a las kuåttro asta i a las singko gof ya-ña humuyong ya para u hugåndo este siha na duendes. Lao i patgon hinasson-ña na muñeka hugandodo-ña lao åhe'.

English

Woman : A wife and a husband once had a daughter, and each night this child really liked to play at Agaña Heights Church, but everytime she played she would always laugh as if she had a playmate.  One night the child went missing, and it was the duendes she was playing with, who took the girl and put her in a small box, and made the child shrink.  So the husband and wife went to the church and told Påle' Oskåt (Oscar Calvo).  They found the child but she had shrunk and was in a shoe box.  Påle' Oskåt told them to go get Our Lady's belt at the church and made them spank the child three times with the belt and the child grew back to size, but it was the duendes who had taken her.

Påle' : And the child thought that the duendes was actually a doll?

Woman : A doll.  The child thought her playmate was a doll.  And every day she would go out and play from 4pm till 5pm to play with the duendes.  The child thought her playmate was a doll but it wasn't.

ILEK-ÑA I MAESTRA

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Finaisen si maestra ni estudiånte, "Señora, kao siña yo' malak i kemmon?"

Ilek-ña i maestra gi fino' Englis, "No!  N - A - O, no!"

KÅNTAN KUARESMA : DIMUYE MANHENGGE

"Dimuye Manhengge" is another well-known Lenten hymn in all the islands of the Marianas. It is also often sung at a funeral or wake.

Chamorro Lyrics

Dimuye, manhengge, i Såntos Kilu'us;

adora si Yu'us nai måtai guihe.

(Kneel, oh believers, before the Holy Cross;

adore God who has died on it.)

Dichoso i ante ni gaige gi fi'on

i sen gofli'ion na Nana'libre.

(Blessed is the soul who is at the side

of the most lovable Savior.)

Tekune manisao i Såntos Kilu'us,

i mames na Yu'us ma puno' guihe.

(Bow before, o sinner, the Holy Cross,

to the sweet God who was killed there.)

Gi Såntos Kilu'us i pepblen i anti-ho,

yan i ha'ani-ho boi na' linangle'.

(In the Holy Cross is the poverty of my soul,

and I will guard my life in It.)

Ti siña ta yute' ennao na señåt-ta

annai i Tatå-ta umakalaye.

(We cannot abandon this our sign

wherein our Father was hung.)

Interesting Words and Ideas

• "Si Yu'us nai måtai guihe."  God, ofcourse, cannot die; He is immortal.  Jesus, in His human nature, did die a true, human death.  His human soul left His human body.  But Jesus is also true God, as well as true man.  He also rose from the dead when His human soul re-entered His human body, rising in glory.
• "Gi Såntos Kilu'us i pepblen i anti-ho."  How is the poverty of one's soul found in the Cross?  In what way is our soul poor?  Our souls are poor in grace, in merit, in righteousness.  If we look at our souls, the choices we have made and the things we have done, we have more than enough reason to be ashamed, and no reason to boast.  But Jesus dying on the Cross wins for us the pardon of our sins and spiritual poverty.  We cannot boast before God, but we can take shelter in the Cross of Jesus who died for sinners.
• "Annai i Tatå-ta umakalaye."  The song speaks of "Father" (Tåta) but not God the Father.  God the Father was not hung on the Cross; God the Son was.  The song is following a peculiar Spanish custom of calling Jesus "Father."  The prophet Isaiah speaks about the coming Messiah, which Jesus is, as the "Everlasting Father." Jesus tells the Apostles that He will not leave them orphans, as if He were their father. Jesus represents God the Father to us and told the Apostles, "Whoever sees Me sees the Father," because Jesus is the Son and the Son comes from the Father and represents the Father. So, although Jesus is not God the Father but is instead God the Son, for all these reasons and others, we can call Him a Father because He is like a Father to us.

THE SPANISH ORIGINAL

Like many Chamorro hymns, it is based on a Spanish original. You hear some little differences in the music, even between Saipan and Guam. Sometimes a word or two is changed even in the Spanish original. But the Spanish version usually starts with :

Venid, oh cristianos, la cruz adoremos;

la cruz ensalcemos que al mundo salvó.

(Come, oh Christians, let us adore the cross;

let us exalt the cross which redeemed the world.)