People of Guam
Guam hosts a diverse community made up of CHamoru people and non-native settlers, including descendants of the Vietnamese refugees who first name to Guam in 1975.
THE CHAMORUS
Guam is part of the Marianas Archipelago, a chain of islands that includes the Northern Mariana Islands. The CHamoru people are Indigenous to the Marianas. Alternative spellings for “CHamoru” include “Chamorro” and “Chamoru.”
Today, CHamorus make up 37.3 percent of Guam’s population. The descendants of the ancient Austronesian voyagers who first settled the island, CHamorus were also the first Indigenous Pacific people to encounter Europeans when Magellan's expedition to circumnavigate the earth stopped at Guam in March 1521.
According to one of Magellan’s crew, Antonio Pigafetta, CHamorus used their sackman and proa canoes to approach the Spanish fleet. Impressed by the canoes’ gliding movement and craftsmanship, the island was briefly given the name Islas de las Velas Latinas–– the Island of the Latine Sails. However, a misunderstanding between the Spanish and CHamorus resulted in the Spanish believing that they had stolen some supplies from their ship. The Spanish ships opened fire on the CHamorus to disperse them, and the island was renamed Islas de los Ladrones–– the Island of Thieves.
Today, CHamorus make up 37.3 percent of Guam’s population. The descendants of the ancient Austronesian voyagers who first settled the island, CHamorus were also the first Indigenous Pacific people to encounter Europeans when Magellan's expedition to circumnavigate the earth stopped at Guam in March 1521.
According to one of Magellan’s crew, Antonio Pigafetta, CHamorus used their sackman and proa canoes to approach the Spanish fleet. Impressed by the canoes’ gliding movement and craftsmanship, the island was briefly given the name Islas de las Velas Latinas–– the Island of the Latine Sails. However, a misunderstanding between the Spanish and CHamorus resulted in the Spanish believing that they had stolen some supplies from their ship. The Spanish ships opened fire on the CHamorus to disperse them, and the island was renamed Islas de los Ladrones–– the Island of Thieves.
THE CAROLINIANS
Guam’s other Indigenous people, the Carolinians, also inhabited the island alongside the CHamorus. Like most parts of Oceania before European “contact,” the people of the Mariana Islands and Caroline Islands were in constant communication with each other as the result of their shared voyaging culture.
During the Spanish era, in an attempt to find CHamorus who had escaped for the Carolines, a Spanish expedition that included the CHamoru navigator Alonzo Soon set out to find the Caroline islands. However, they returned unsuccessful with some scholars speculating that Soon perhaps misled the Spanish away from the islands.
During the Spanish era, in an attempt to find CHamorus who had escaped for the Carolines, a Spanish expedition that included the CHamoru navigator Alonzo Soon set out to find the Caroline islands. However, they returned unsuccessful with some scholars speculating that Soon perhaps misled the Spanish away from the islands.
The FILIPINOS
Filipinos make up 29.3 percent of Guam’s contemporary population, making them the second largest ethnic group behind the CHamorus.
One of the earliest recorded interactions between CHamorus and Filipinos took place in 1672 when the Spanish missionary Diego Luis de San Vitores and his Filipino lay assistant, Pedro Calungsor, were killed in Tumon after they baptized an infant without her father’s consent.
Since then, Filipinos were brought to Guam as laborers and as political exiles by both the Spanish and Americans. By 1819, the Filipino population in Guam had vastly outnumbered the Spanish population.
One of the earliest recorded interactions between CHamorus and Filipinos took place in 1672 when the Spanish missionary Diego Luis de San Vitores and his Filipino lay assistant, Pedro Calungsor, were killed in Tumon after they baptized an infant without her father’s consent.
Since then, Filipinos were brought to Guam as laborers and as political exiles by both the Spanish and Americans. By 1819, the Filipino population in Guam had vastly outnumbered the Spanish population.
Who Are Guamanians?
The meaning of the term “Guamanian” has changed over time. In the mid-20th century, the term was used to distinguish CHamorus in Guam from CHamorus in the Northern Mariana Islands. Today, “Guamanian” refers to all residents who live in Guam, CHamoru and non-CHamoru alike.