NO REST FOR THE AWAKE - MINAGAHET CHAMORRO

The  latte  has become a key symbol in expressions of contemporary Chamoru identity and a key means by which they have come to establish a meaningful connection to their ancient ancestors.  Following centuries of colonization, Chamorus had their connection to their ancestors was severely disrupted and felt little intimacy with regards to their ancestors prior to Spanish colonization. They had come to accept that they and much of their culture and beliefs were primitive or savage.  The study of the  latte  and its promotion as a historical artifact in the 20 th century helped create the everyday possibilities for Chamorus to form new positive connections to their ancestors. The  latte  is no longer a discarded remnant from a primitive past, but an icon of ethnic identity, empowerment and sacredness.  As the Chamoru people have undergone significant cultural shifts over the past four centuries, primarily due to colonization, the  latte  has become a quiet but important sym

It's almost Mes Chamoru once again! For my free weekly Chamorro classes today I brought a record player and a wide range of Chamorro LPs from my collection. We listened to a few songs, discussing the lyrics. One of the requests from the students was this song below "Mannginge'" from Jesse Bais. It is one commonly heard at parties, in stores, and also used by teachers for performances with their Chamorro classes. The practice of mannginge', or the sniffing and sometimes kissing of the hand of an elder is the subject of different community debates. First there are the debates over whether or not it is dying or still persists. Although it may not be something practiced in all Chamorro families today, it is definitely not dead, and if anything I find more and more families practicing it because of the belief that it is dead. Second there are the debates over who you should or should not pay respect to in this way. This is something that I struggle with as well.

Ti katoliko yu'. SDA i rilihon-hu anai dumadangkolu yu'. Gi entre todu i gima'yu'us siha giya Guahan, i gima'yu'us Katoliko i mas Chamorro. Hunggan, matanom i simiyas para i hineggen Protestante mas ki un siento anos tatte, lao ma'establesi ayu na guma'yu'us gi duranten i Tiempon Fina'amerikanu, ya humuyongna ti gof Chamorro i pengga' Protestante giya Guahan. I rilihon SDA, humålom giya Guahan despues di i Tiempon Chapones, ya put enao manhålom i Chamorro siha gi duranten un mas didok na Tiempon Fina'amerikanu. Anai estaba humålom yu' gi Gima'yu'us Katoliko, meggai Fino' Chamorro hu hungok, gi kanta siha, tinaitai siha yan pinagat lokkue'. Lao gi gima'yu'us-mami, taya'. Achokka' ti hu aksepta i doktrina komo iyo-ku, hu agradesi i che'cho'-na i Gima'yu'us Katoliko gi halacha na tiempo. Sa' siha mas umu'usa i Fino' Chamorro. Estague un hemplo: *****************

"Adios Benit" by Michael Lujan Bevacqua The Guam Daily Post February 24, 2016 Last week the island lost an island icon and a Chamorro pioneer with the passing of Dr. Bernadita Camacho-Dungca or “Benit” as she was known by many. So much of what we take for granted today in terms of Chamorro pride, the Chamorro renaissance or the surge of Chamorro cultural identity is tied to what she helped to created in her life. Her list of accomplishments is numerous and something to marvel at even scanning her biography. For so many of the efforts that have helped build pride amongst Chamorros and raise their consciousness as an indigenous people, who deserve decolonization and need to protect their language and heritage, Benit was there. She assisted Dr. Donald Topping with the development of his Chamorro language trilogy of books and is listed as a co-author on “Chamorro Reference Grammar” and “The Chamorro-English Dictionary.” She helped train the first generation of Chamorro l

For almost my entire life I've played video games. I played Double Dragon, Startropics and Dragon Warrior IV for the NES. I played Street Fighter II, Final Fantasy III and NBA Live 95 for the SNES. I have played a bunch of games for SEGA Systems, including Night Trap and even Dune for SEGA CD. On the computer I played games like World Builder, Pool of Radiance, Pirates! and Civilization in many incarnations. Most recently I've played games like Monster Hunter, Starcraft II and Hearthstone. Video games don't take up as much of my life as they used to, as I am busy with working, family life and activism, but they still play a role in my identity and how I see myself culturally. For some their "Chamorro" identity may be rooted to visiting ranches on weekends and attending mass with their grandmothers. For me, Chamorro identity comes not just from working with my grandfather in his blacksmith shop or reading the Chamorro Bible with my grandmother, but also yelling

The website of Pale' Eric Forbes is a great place for information on Chamorro language, culture and history. He has everything from Chamorro sayings, to translations of Chamorro texts, to little tidbits and footnotes from Chamorro history. It is a great resource for those who want to deepen their knowledge about so many of the things that make Chamorro Chamorro. He has a creative way of drawing out interesting parts of our native and pre-contact history, but also our colonial history. He has an equal excitement for both dimensions, which many find surprising because of his work as a Catholic priest. Below is the transcript of some testimony given recently at the Legislature gi Fino' Chamoru. Pale' Eric provides not only a transcript but also a translation. Often times when he provide a text like this he'll have detailed notes on some of the words used and their origins. The testimony was given in favor of a bill to support the Historic Inalahan program. It is nice

--> A Play Called Pagat Michael Lujan Bevacqua The Marianas Variety 4/16/14 Later this month, the University of Guam will be holding a series of special premiere performances of the locally written and produced play, “Pågat.” This play and these performances are made possible through a collaboration with UOG’s Theater and Chamorro Studies programs and the cultural dance group Inetnon Gefpago. The play will focus on the complexities of contemporary and historical Chamorro identity, through a cast of four modern young adults and the memories of a cast of spirits who share with the audience key moments in the history of the Chamorro people. Full disclosure, I am one of the playwrights for this play and so naturally I am biased in terms of its awesomeness and its potential. This play was originally written by Victoria Leon Guerrero and I for the dance group Inetnon Gefpago. In 2010, their leader Vince Reyes asked Victoria and I to write a play that would celebr

Mina'singko na Lisayu 12/19/13 It is strange but some of the happiest memories I have of my grandmother were going with her to funerals. These funerals were like my cultural, linguistic and genealogical boot-camp. I didn’t grow up knowing much about Chamorro language, culture or my family relations. When I became interested while attending UOG, it gave an entire new dimension to our relationship. Whenever there was a funeral of a family friend, relative and so on, grandma would tell me, you’re gonna take me to this. “you’ll find lots of Chamorros to talk to there.” I enjoyed riding in the car talking to my grandmother. This would be the briefing, where a genealogical minefield   would be laid out in front of me. My grandmother would trace a convoluted route that would connect so and so with so and so and with us and us. Along the way she would take us into a seemingly infinite number of cul de sacs, providing tangential stories of this family tha

Para åpmam na tiempo i hinasson-ña i taotao Guahan gof “colonial” put hafa siña ta ofresi i mundo. Iya Guahan un gof dikike’ yan chågo’ na isla. I Mañamorro un gof dikike’ na taotao, mandåñu nu “colonialism” yan tåya’ esta perfekto puro’ put Guiya yan i kutturå-ña. Tåya’ sibilisaion-ña. Humuyongña, para tiningo’, pi’ot tiningo’ edukasion, siempre tåya’ guini lokkue’. Anggen un hongge este na “colonial” na hinasso, pues edukasion, mismo put i matulaikakå-ña i “local” esta ki i hineggen yan i tiningo’ sanhiyong tumahgue gui’.   I Unibetsedåt Guahan, taiguihi i meggaiña na institusion edukasion gi i estorian Guahan, mafa’tinas ni’ este na klasin hinasso. Gi tinituhun-ña, ha fa’sahnge yan ha hoño’ i tiningo’ i Chamorro ya ha gof representåyi i fuetsan i tiningo’ sanhiyong. Put este, ti mismo membro i unibetsedåt gi kuminidåt, mismo ma’ma’ya gui’ gi hilo’ i taotao guini. I manggaige gi halom i unibetsedåt ma atan papa’ i taotao tano’ ya ti umachetton magåhet i do

Cloud Atlas was by far my favorite film of 2012. It was a film I only saw once, but wanted to watch again immediately after I left the theatre. Part of this is due to the fact that a group of actors play multiple roles in different historical eras. Some of them are obvious, others aren’t so clear. The film becomes a type of game trying to figure out who is who. In the credits they flash on the screen each actor and all their roles. You realize then how many you recognized and how many zipped before your vision but you didn’t recognize them. The story itself is complicated and so that might also create that desire. You want to see it again because there may be a section you didn’t quite catch or weren’t quite sure about. At certain points the jumping across times can be confusing, especially towards the beginning when you don’t quite have your bearings yet. As one of the characters in the film states, a half finished book is like an unfinished love affair. It