Early Historic Accounts

Ancient Guam Era, Chamorro Culture, Chamorro Folktales, Early Historic Accounts, Historic Eras of Guam, Our Heritage, People, People and Places

Taga

Largest latte house in the Marianas. Found nowhere else in the world, latte first appeared in the Mariana Islands about 800 years ago, during a period known as the Latte Era of Chamorro/CHamoru culture. Each stone is comprised of a vertical pillar (haligi) topped with a hemi-spherical capstone (tasa). Organized in two parallel rows of three to seven stones, the latte likely served as foundation posts for wood and thatch houses that were built on top of them. Representing the apex of CHamoru latte architecture, the massive stones of Taga House, located in Tinian, are 15 feet in overall length.

Ancient Guam Era, Ancient Guam: Economics, Chamorro Culture, Civic Society, Division of Resources, Early Historic Accounts, Economic Systems, Economics and Commercial Development, European Exploration, Trade and Scientific Studies, Historic Eras of Guam, Our Heritage, Trade, Transportation, Technology and Communications

The Matao Iron Trade Part 3: Appropriation and Entanglement

The matao fashioned the iron they acquired from trading with visiting ship crews into traditional tools, including punches, drills, fish hooks and adze blades. The most prominently mentioned application was canoe construction, a major preoccupation of high status men. The Marianas outrigger canoe played a vital role as the integrating mechanism for the islanders’ cultural unity, connecting their tano’ tasi (land of the sea) via inter-island transportation, communication and trade.

The Matao Iron Trade Part 2: Galleon Trading and Repatriation

Between 1565 and 1665, Guam’s southwest coast received sporadic visits from Spanish vessels, including the first wreck of a trade galleon (San Pablo, 1568), as well as the first encounters with Dutch and English mariners. However, a more significant exchange venue was established in the 30-mile wide Rota Channel to trade with the Spanish ships crossing regularly from New Spain (Mexico) to the Philippines.

The Matao Iron Trade Part 1: Contact and Commerce

Members of the matao, the highest-ranking strata of Mariana Islands society in the 16th and 17th centuries, carried on the first sustained cultural interaction and commercial exchange between Pacific Islanders and Europeans. From Ferdinand Magellan’s 1521 visit through the establishment of the 1668 Spanish Jesuit mission, these island traders, primarily from Guam and Rota, regularly bartered food staples and craftwork for iron goods with Spanish exploration and trade vessels, Dutch expeditions and English privateers.

Ancient Guam Era, Chamorro Culture, Early Historic Accounts, Historic Eras of Guam, Our Heritage

Ancient CHamoru Kinship and Land Tenure

In CHamoru culture today, the notion of family or i-familia is very important. From rosaries to weddings, funerals to barbecues, many CHamoru social events revolve around family. CHamoru names, social status, social and cultural identities are rooted in family relations. CHamorus rely on their families to take care of them; likewise, CHamorus are given responsibilities and obligations to carry out because of the connection they share as members of the same kin group.

Ancient Guam Era, Chamorro Culture, Early Historic Accounts, Historic Eras of Guam, Our Heritage

Ancient CHamoru Settlement Patterns

White sandy beaches, lush jungles, verdant landscapes and gorgeous sunsets—the Marianas, for many, resemble a tropical paradise. With all this natural beauty, do you ever wonder why some parts of Guam are more crowded than others?

Ancient Guam Era, Chamorro Culture, Early Historic Accounts, Historic Eras of Guam, Our Heritage

Ancient CHamoru Cultural Aspects of Fishing

Fishing was one of the most important subsistence activities in ancient CHamoru society. Surrounded by the ocean, the CHamorus relied on their fishing skills to obtain fish, shellfish, turtles and other marine resources necessary for their survival. The CHamorus had different tools, beliefs and cultural practices specifically related to fishing, as well as rituals that helped ensure their efforts were successful.

Ancient Guam Era, Ancient Guam: Religion, Burial Practices and Beliefs, Chamorro Culture, Civic Society, Early Historic Accounts, Funeral Practices, Historic Eras of Guam, Our Heritage, Religion

Ancient CHamoru Use of Human Bones

Archeological studies have revealed that during the Latte Period ancient CHamorus retrieved bones from deceased bodies after tissue had deteriorated, and used the bones for use as tools or weapons.

Ancient Guam Era, Burial Practices and Beliefs, Chamorro Culture, Early Historic Accounts, Funeral Practices, Historic Eras of Guam, Our Heritage

Ancient CHamoru Burial Rituals

There is a dearth of written accounts of ancient CHamoru burial practices, but from the few historic descriptions available, the burial customs and rituals were elaborate.

Ancient Guam Era, Archeological Investigations, Art, Architecture, Body Adornment, Music and Food, Chamorro Culture, Early Historic Accounts, Food, Historic Eras of Guam, Our Heritage

Ancient CHamoru Use of Rice

In the Mariana Islands, as well as other islands throughout the Pacific, rice is considered one of the most important food staples. Bags of rice are shipped to the islands regularly. In the Marianas, rice is served at most every meal or special occasion.