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Ancient Guam Era, Chamorro Culture, Guampedia Resources, Historic Eras of Guam, Language, Our Heritage, Transportation, Technology and Communications

CHamoru Sidereal Direction Terminology

In 1817 Adelbert von Chamisso recorded the CHamoru terms for what he assumed were cardinal directions: Timi (North), Seplun (South), Manuu (East), Faniipan (West).  These terms are sidereal or star directions and not completely analogous to the Western concepts of North, South, East and West. Nevertheless, these sidereal directions (of or with respect to the distant stars, i.e., the constellations or fixed stars, not the sun or planets) are fixed and not situational positions on the horizon and can easily be used as abstract cardinal directions.

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Guampedia Resources, Historic Eras of Guam, Media Galleries, US Naval Era, Wars and Factors of Peace, WWI

SMS Cormoran: 90th Anniversary

In 2007, Guam commemorated the 90th anniversary of the scuttling of the SMS Cormoran II. The festivities included wreath-laying ceremonies at Apra Harbor and the US Naval Cemetery in Hagåtña, and a series of lectures and an exhibit. Surviving descendants of the original crew and other German representatives were invited to participate. Hosted by the Guam Visitors Bureau and the Department of Parks and Recreation, the week-long celebration was just one way to remember and celebrate the Cormoran and its crew.

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Guampedia Resources, Historic Eras of Guam, Interpretive Essays, Non-CHamoru Ethnicity, US Naval Era, Wars and Factors of Peace, WWI

SMS Cormoran II: Local Stories

From December 1914 to April 1917, Guam was the backdrop for one of the earliest stories of the United States’ participation in World War I. The first violent shots between the US and Germany were fired on Guam. The first German casualties and deaths occurred in the waters of Apra Harbor, Guam. The first POWs were imprisoned on Guam.

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e-Publications, Guampedia Resources, Historic Eras of Guam, US Naval Era, Wars and Factors of Peace, WWI

SMS Cormoran II: Partial Crew List

The partial list presented here that researcher James Oelke-Farley compiled for Guampedia, indicates only 108 crew members. The list was cross-checked with message traffic from the US State Department and prison records. However, Oelke-Farley explains that when the men arrived in the US they often were no longer referred to by the ship upon which they served as crew members (the crew of the SMS Geier which had been interned in Honolulu was combined with the Comoran’s crew on the way to the prisoner of war camp in Fort Douglas, Utah) but rather simply as “POWs” or “German Navy,” which has made an exact identification of every man difficult.

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