Ancient Guam Era - Guampedia

Ancient Guam Era, Chamorro Culture, Chamorro Folktales, Historic Eras of Guam, Our Heritage

Folktale: Alu and Pang

In ancient times the people of the Mariana Islands lived in villages ruled by a maga’låhi or maga’håga (chief or high-ranking son or daughter), who made all the rules and decisions for his or her people. In the area of Guahan now known as Tamuning, there lived a great maga’låhi whose name was Alu. People say he had supernatural strength. If he wanted a drink, he could shake a niyok (coconut) tree and the juice-filled, young, green coconuts would fall to the ground.

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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.

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Ancient Guam Era, Archeological Investigations, Historic Eras of Guam, Land (Tano), Natural Environment, Natural Resources

Ancient Guam’s Environment

In addition to analyzing artifacts, archeologists often study ancient environments to understand how prehistoric societies both shaped, and were shaped by, their natural surroundings. For example, an archeologist might be interested in learning how an ancient population managed to live in a particular environment, such as a desert.

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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?

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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.

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Ancient Guam Era, Archeological Investigations, Chamorro Culture, Historic Eras of Guam, Our Heritage

Ancient CHamoru Fishing Tools

The ancient CHamorus were very adept at fishing and used a variety of implements and techniques to procure food from the inland rivers, lagoons and open sea, including net fishing, trolling, baited hook, spearing and trapping. Fishing was both communal and individual, depending upon the prey.

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Ancient Guam Era, Archeological Investigations, Art, Architecture, Body Adornment, Music and Food, Food, Historic Eras of Guam

Ancient CHamoru Agricultural Practices

For most people in the Marianas today, getting something to eat is as easy as a trip to the grocery store or to a favorite restaurant. This is different from a century or even a few decades ago, when many families had their own ranches where they grew vegetables or fruit, or raised animals for their families to eat.

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Ancient Guam Era, Archeological Investigations, HASSO’: Remembering Guam’s Ancient Heritage Sites, Heritage Sites, Historic Eras of Guam, Villages, Heritage Sites and Island Life

Ritidian (Litekyan)

Located on the northernmost tip of Guam, Ritidian is one of the most spectacular and culturally rich places on island. Formerly a restricted military area, Ritidian is now accessible to the public who wish to take in the unspoiled, natural beauty of the ocean and beaches. Because of its relative isolation, it is a fairly popular site for fishing, swimming and picnicking.

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Ancient Guam Era, Archeological Investigations, Art, Art, Architecture, Body Adornment, Music and Food, Creative Expression, Historic Eras of Guam, Traditional Craft

Ancient CHamoru Cave Art

Dating as far back as the Upper Paleolithic (around 10,000 to 40,000 years ago), humans have been producing art that has both captivated and puzzled archeologists. From figurines to body ornaments to carvings on spear shafts, archeologists have studied and marveled at the subject matter, variety of forms and degree of skill of ancient art.

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

Ancient CHamoru Burial Practices

One of the distinguishing features of our humanity is the way in which people treat and understand death. Death is not only the end of a living organism’s biological functions, but entails a variety of cultural responses and ritual activities that go beyond recognizing the end of an individual’s life.

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