Guam’s Villages

Yona derives its name from the CHamoru word iyo-ña, meaning to possess something material, personal or spiritual. One of the village’s longtime landowners, Santiago Leon Guerrero Cruz, said many people admired the area for its bountiful coconut plantation, and visitors would frequently ask who owned the property.

The meaning of “Yigo” is unclear. According to some, it comes from the Spanish word yugo which means yoke (the type used to secure a carabao to a cart or plow). However, some sources refer to the area as Asyigo which means the home of (a person known as) Yigo. If this is the case, “yigo” may be an ancient word thats meaning has been lost.

The village derives its name from the word uma, which means to carry something on the back or a heavy load on the shoulders.

“Tamuning” is a Carolinian word which was given to the area where Carolinians settled beginning in 1849, after a typhoon devastated Lamotrek and Satawal. It may be that Tamuning is the name of the Carolinian chief’s clan.

The village probably derives its name from the phrase “entalo’ i fe’fo’,” which means between the cliffs. It’s possible that the name is derived from another word, fo’fo’, which means a bubbling spring.

It is said that wild yams grew plentiful in the lands nestled above the capital village of Hagåtña. These yams were harvested and cooked in earthen ovens dug into the ground, a process known as chinåhan. The village name of Sinajana is believed to derive from this word, from which comes chinahån-ña – “his or her cooking ground.”