Language Survival Requires Speaking

Underwood: Chamorro language survival requires speaking
by Jerick Sablan
Pacific Daily News
5/31/16

University of Guam President Robert Underwood last week gave a powerful message to Chamorros on how to create a community of speakers.

Underwood was a keynote speaker for the Festival of Pacific Arts Indigenous Language Conference held at the university.

“You can’t Hafa Adai yourself to a Chamorro speaking community,” he said.

Knowing just a few words in Chamorro, Underwood said, isn’t going to create a community that speaks Chamorro, nor is “imagining” it will happen 50 years later — referencing the governor’s Imagine Guam initiative, a plan developed by community members that outlines where the island should be in half a century.

Chamorros must learn and speak the language now for the language to strive, Underwood said.
“It’s that simple,” he said.

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, or UNESCO, has included Chamorro on its list of languages in danger of extinction.

Underwood said it’s “absolutely” possible for Chamorros to pick up the language, even if they are older. It just takes effort to do it, he said.

“I wish I had happier news,” Underwood said. “I’m afraid we don’t.”

The university president said when he was growing up, he would hear Chamorro spoken on the streets, and everywhere it was common.

Today it isn’t so, Underwood said.

“It’s sad what’s happening,” he said.

Underwood has been an advocate for the Chamorro language for many years. He said he was surprised when he came back to Guam after living in the states for some years and discovered he knew the language better than some of his peers.

He was able to use Chamorro despite being out in the states because his mother would pretend to not speak English when salespeople came to their home. He said it was a game he and his mom played and it helped him learn a lot of Chamorro.

Much of the loss can be attributed to Chamorros thinking that English would help them succeed in life, he said.

It’s important to understand Chamorro language in the context of historical development, Underwood said.

For example, the Chamorro word for avocado, alageta, comes from the old American term alligator pears.

“It’s a wonderful story,” he said.

He said the conference was important, not so much to rediscover who islanders are, but to know that everyone has a certain set of historical experiences.

Paul Paton, from First Languages Australia, who also attended Friday’s conference, said his organization is helping keep indigenous languages alive in the country.

Australia is home to many endangered languages and the group’s hope is to help them revive and thrive, he said. They have more than 20 language centers and have great support from the government, he said.

Puengen Minagof Nochebuena 2014

Puengen Minagof Nochebuena
by Michael Lujan Bevacqua
December 3, 2014
The Marianas Variety

THE Chamorro Studies Program at the University of Guam organizes numerous events and programs each year. We host or co-host forums, such as the female candidate forums and sexual harassment forums held earlier this year. We offer Chamorro language classes and over the past year Chamorro dance and weaving courses. We hold regular colloquia where people speak on issues important in a contemporary or historical sense to the Chamorro people, including last year’s “The Chamorro Experience gi Fino’ Chamorro” a lecture series in the Chamorro language. But amidst all these activities there are two primary events that the program organizes each year, I Inachaigen Fino’ CHamoru or the Chamorro Language Competition, each March on Charter Day and Puengen Minagof Noche Buena, a Chamorro Christmas celebration each December.

This year’s Puengen Minagof Noche Buena will be taking place this Friday, Dec. 5 starting at 5:30 p.m. in the Humanities and Social Sciences building atrium at UOG. It is a collaborative effort of the instructors and students for all the Chamorro languages classes at UOG in the Fanuchan’an (fall) semester.

Normally, the evening features a bilen-making competition, however this year is different. A bilen is a Nativity scene, usually featuring a baby Jesus, Mary, Joseph, some shepherds and the Three Kings (Wise Men). Nowadays many people buy a set or use a set bought in previous years, but in the past a family would collect moss and wood from the jungle and build the scene themselves. In the past, classes would use found objects and natural or recyclable materials to build their bilens and they would be pitted against each other to see whose was the best. The competitive aspect will still be present this year, but instead students will be constructing latte stones. They will still have to use natural and recyclable materials. Judges will be scoring the latte stones in the following categories: Most Beautiful, Most Relevant to the Theme and Most Creative. There is an additional category where those attending Puengen Minagof will be able to vote for their favorite in the People’s Choice Award.

A must for each Puengen Minagof is the enjoying of Chamorro Christmas songs. Students will be singing a wide variety of songs both traditional and more contemporary. Come and join UOG students and sing along to old favorites such as “Dandan i Pandaretas” or “Kantåyi gui’” or “Ta Falågue Sahyao.” You can also hear contemporary Christmas songs such as “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” or “Jingle Bells” and “Silver Bells” translated into Chamorro. Here’s an excerpt of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer or “Rudof” translated into Chamorro:

Rudof agaga' i gui'eng-mu/ lålamlam kada puengi,/ ya kada ma attan i gui'eng-mu,/ sigi hao di ma kasse,/ todu i mangga'chong-mu,/ sigi hao di ma kasse,/ sa' hågu ha' nai na binådu,/ sasahnge yan na'ma'se'.

I am proud to present that for this year’s Puengen Minagof, we will also be featuring Chamorro weaving demonstrations. This semester the Chamorro Studies program has been working with the group Pa’a Taotao Tano’ to offer a class in Chamorro weaving. For the past few months, students in the course have been learning how to weave items such as the gueha (fan), katupat (rice pouch), guafak (woven mat), piña (pineapple), puti’on (stars), ala (basket) and tuhong sakman (canoe hat). The instructor is Art Pangelinan from Pa’a Taotao Tano’, who has been teaching the students to weave with both hågon niyok (coconut fibers) and akgak (pandanus fibers). The students will be presenting the items they have learned to weave this semester and also be offering some demonstrations for those interested in trying their hand at a kaputat, a puti’on or a apacha’ (grasshopper).

There will be other displays and demonstrations, including the screening of Chamorro language film projects by students and the introducing of a new virtual dictionary website. Professors Gerhardt Schwab and Rosa Palomo of UOG have been working on developing a virtual database and learning resource for the Chamorro language. Students in CM301, or Advanced Chamorro, have been working this semester to add words, dialogues, grammatical lessons to the website which will hopefully be launched sometime next year. Rosa Palomo has been teaching Chamorro at UOG for many years. Gerhardt Schwab is actually a social work professor at UOG, but recently declared himself a Chamorro Studies major and has since returned to school to learn the Chamorro language.

Finally, what is perhaps the most exciting aspect of Puengen Minagof for people is the food. This year’s table will feature a variety of exciting types of buñelos, or donuts. According to the students coordinating the table, there will be buñelos dågu, buñelos aga’, buñelos månglo, buñelos kalamasa, buñelos kamuti, buñelos manha and perhaps several other surprises. 

I want to thank Dean James Sellmann of the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences for hosting the event. I also want to congratulate the fafa’na’guen Chamorro at UOG for all their hard work in making this event happen: Sinora Palomo, Sinora Flores, Sinora Mendiola, Sinot Franquez and Sinot Benavente. They are all part-time faculty who are dedicated to the promotion and protection of the Chamorro language and each year organize wonderful events like this to that end.

Biba Puengen Minagof! Biba Chamorro! Biba UOG!

Maisa, the Chamoru Girl Who Saved Guam

Friday, 27 November 2015

GDOE Presents "Maisa The Chamoru Girl Who Saves Guåhan"

Written by  Roselle Romanes
The Pacific News Center 

The film is produced by the GDOE Chamorro Studies and Special Projects Division, and Twiddle Production and is 100% federally funded by US Department of Education Consolidated Grant,Title V.

Guam - The Guam Department of Education is excited to announce that "Maisa The Chamoru Girl Who Saves Guåhan", an animated film in the Chamorro language will have its premiere to the general public on Dec 12, 2015 at the UOG Lecture Hall.

The film is produced by the GDOE Chamorro Studies and Special Projects Division.

You can view the trailer at the following link:https://vimeo.com/146631622.

The Importance of Being Bilingual

The Importance of Being Bilingual
Michael Lujan Bevacqua
May 19, 2015
No Rest for the Awake - Minagahet Chamorro

For the Importance of Second Language Learning Forum that I helped organize a few weeks ago, we were honored to have a very diverse and exciting panel. Coming at it from different angles, they covered a number of way, some more philosophical and others more practical, as to how learning a second language can be important and as a result, something that should be required at UOG. 

The panel featured the following guests:

Kenneth Gofigan Kuper, a Ph.D. student in Political Science at UH Manoa and former student of mine. He is a young activist who has taken up both the banner of decolonization and language revitalization. I've been working with him on a number of projects such as Ha'anen Fino' Chamoru Ha' and the upcoming Lalahen Sinahi project. He took Chamorro as his second language requirement at UOG and it changed the course of his life. 

Ronald T. Laguana, the current director of the Division of Chamorro Studies in the Guam Department of Education. He is a founding member of the group Nasion Chamoru and is also one of the people behind the popularization of the Inefrei written by Dr. Bernadita Camacho Dungca. He is a proud and active member of the Inetnon Lalahin Guahan, YMLG. 

Toyoko Kang and Clarisa Quan are both professors at UOG. Kang is a Japanese language professor and Quan is a Linguistics and English professor. Both of them have been critics of the dropping of the second language requirement at UOG. 

Dr. Laura Souder Betances is a pioneering Chamorro scholar. She was the one who first connected the academic ideas of feminism into Chamorro scholarship. She is the author of Daughters of the Island and the co-editor of the volume Chamorro Self-Determination with Robert Underwood. She and her husband are consultants for diversity and education.

With the help i nobia-hu Elizabeth Kelley Bowman, we gathered together some of the main quotes by the panelists. I'm sharing them below for people to see. As you can see, it was a very interesting discussion. This may have been part of the reason why the overwhelming majority of people who attended the event and who completed a survey, supported keeping the language requirement in place. 

*******************

 

I took Chamorro 101 to fulfill the language requirement.  I didn’t really care about the Chamorro language.  There was nothing in it for me.  . . . There was so much evidence of internalized racism and internalized colonialism, but what happened was that I ended up taking a few courses, with Chamorro language being a pivotal one, with Siñora Teresita Flores . . . and I learned a lot.  We would come to class and I would learn words that I used to remember hearing my grandmother speak when I grew up.  . . . You have just given me the gift, siñora, of understanding something that I never understood my entire life.  I got more and more involved with this, based off of taking a random class, because it was a GE requirement. 

I really had no interest in the Chamorro language four years ago, when I was twenty.  I’m twenty-four now.  And so, it was so important that I took that course, because sometimes the best things in life tend to hit you over the head when you least expect it.  And that’s why I support having second-language requirements as a GE, because we should not take away the opportunity for another person to have the story that I have.  To have the story of reconnecting with their roots as a Chamorro, no matter if you’re taking Tagalog classes, you’re taking Chinese, there’s so much reconnection to who you are, because through language, you can see the worldview, hear the worldview, the epistemology of your ancestors.  And there’s nothing that should take that away from you.

Kenneth Gofigan Kuper, M.A.

Yanggen para taiguini pa’go, na mafunas ya para mungga machule’ I Chamorro guini, pat maseha hafa na suhetu, Chapones, Tagalog pat maseha hafa, insuttu enao! Para guini gi tano’-ta gi este i eskuela-ta. I Unibetsedat Guahan i mas takhilo’ na unibetsedat guini gi Pasifiku.

Ronald T. Laguana

Language learning, teaching, shares some category of the learning process of critical thinking.  For example, . . . in [Japanese] 101 they are really completely beginners.  So they can’t analyze each word vocabulary particle, or prepositions; they have to analyze, and then, to get the meaning, they have to synthesize.  . . . Students have to learn how to analyze the information and to synthesize and then find out, evaluate, those information . . . Those kinds of learning process occur in second-language learners.  For example, each language has different concepts or realizations. . . .

To learn culture, to just read about Japanese culture in English, I don’t agree.  I don’t agree. Learn through the language, and learn to use it.  Otherwise they cannot use it. Learning should be used.  . . .  So that means students got deeper perspective. 

Toyoko Kang, Ph.D.

When I heard that they wanted to take away the second language requirement, I said, “Huh?”  We live in an island that’s multilingual, that’s multiethnic, that’s multicultural, and they want to take it away?  And Guam, I think, reflects the world as it is today.  We’re living in an increasingly multilingual, global world where multilingualism, multiculturalism, are the norm, rather than the exception.  And for you to take it away is ridiculous.  Or even to kind of reduce the requirement for it.  Second-language learning is cultural learning as well; learning modern languages is to learn the cultures as well.  . . . It promotes cultural awareness, it promotes criticism of ethnocentrism, believing that yours is the only correct one, superior one, it promotes acceptance of other people, other cultures, and I think it is very, very important. 

Clarisa Quan, Ph.D.

To the members of the faculty senate, who may be listening, who may be eavesdropping: it’s important that these voices, our voices, be heard.  . . . As Dr. Underwood said, “Siña mantulaika este na recommendation,” no?  And that’s the thing to remember.  Sometimes we make logical decisions, and they lead us to wrong destinations.  And we have the opportunity here to change course.  And to defy logic, because sometimes things are simply not logical, especially when they belong to matters of the heart. . . .

Universities exist to universalize students.  And how do we universalize students?  We universalize them by providing them with different universes in which to learn, to make decisions, and to operate, and to be successful.  One of the things that Sammy [Betances] and I have been doing lately, in the Marianas, in the Northern Marianas, and in Palau, is that we have been talking about the global-island divide, and how do we bridge that divide?  . . . If we’re going to operate and be successful in the global reality, we need to know more than one language.  Fortunately, many – most – of us are bilingual.  But we need to know many languages, because in order to be successful, you have to negotiate in many parts of the world.  In order to have an economic future, we need to be able to speak the languages of the people that we are trading with.  . . .

So that’s very important, from a language perspective, from a global perspective, from a university perspective.  Diminishing the capacity of students to learn more than one language, than the lingua franca which is English, is diminishing the capacities of universities to fully function as universalizing places for students. . . .

So that’s one aspect of language.  And I’d like you to think about another aspect of language, and that is language as the umbilical cord of culture.  Language connects us with culture.  And ladies and gentlemen, we don’t need to be reminded of this.  The Chamorro language and culture exists here, on this island, and these islands, of the Marianas.  Nowhere else on earth, nowhere else on earth, do we have the sovereign right to speak and live as Chamorros except in the Marianas.  So we have another responsibility.  This is not just about making available languages.  We’re not talking about just any language.  We’re talking about our indigenous language.  We’re talking about the responsibility that we have to protect the sovereignty of our language and our culture.  Nowhere else will anybody do this for us. 

This is our game.  These are our decisions.  . . . It is our responsibility to stand up, and that is why this kind of gathering is so important, because we need to make our voices heard.

Laura Torres Souder Betances, Ph.D.

2010 Kompetasion Fino' Chamoru gi Unibetsedat Guahan

University developing Chamorro curriculum

University developing Chamorro curriculum

by Amanda Francel Blas
Pacific Daily News
October 15, 2013

A standardized Chamorro language curriculum for college students is now being developed.
The University of Guam received a three-year federally funded grant from the Administration of Native Americans to create a standardized curriculum for teaching the Chamorro language at the college level.



"We want to develop a typical language course of instruction for Chamorro," said Faye Untalan, Ph.D, principal investigator of the project and writer of the grant. "We have one for all the other languages, and we need one for Chamorro."


Entitled "I Ma Adahen i Fino' Chamorro gi Koleho," or "The Preservation of the Chamorro Language at the Post-Secondary Level," the project also includes plans of producing a textbook for student use. According to Untalan, the standardized text and curriculum will allow students to get the same Chamorro language education at any institution it is offered.

Working together

Currently, there are only four colleges that offer Chamorro language: the University of Guam; Northern Marianas College; Guam Community College; and University of Hawai'i at Manoa. The four institutions will come together to develop the uniform curriculum.



According to Untalan, the curriculum and textbook will be reviewed and approved by a panel of experts, or the mamfayi.

"Members include native Chamorro speakers that have demonstrated advocacy and work in Chamorro language," Untalan said.

Local programs

The project will add to Guam's already existing standardized chamorro language and culture programs, which are part of the Department of Education's Chamorro Studies and Special Projects Division.

These programs include the Chamorro Language and Culture Program (CLCP), which provides Chamorro language and culture instruction daily to all elementary students, and the Chamoru Mandate Program Secondary (CHAMPS), which requires all secondary school students take a one-year credit course in Chamorro language instruction at the middle school level and at the high school level. Both of those programs are locally funded.

For Untalan, having a standardized Chamorro language curriculum will help promote culture.
"It provides an opportunity for students who never learned their language to learn it in college," Untalan said.

Untalan and project coordinator Michael Lujan Bevacqua, Ph.D, will formally introduce the project to the public today at 3 p.m. They will make their presentation in the multipurpose room in UOG's Leon Guerrero building.

Prugraman Fino' Chamoru giya San Diego

Prugraman fino' CHamoru ginnen i gurupon PITI gi iya San Diego

by Pedro Onedera
Guam Pacific Daily News
December 20, 2011

Sigun gi nina'huyong emfotmasion ginen i Gurupon PITI gi iya San Diego, ma anunsia na manma nå'i siha fondon salåppe' ginen i Atmenestrasion Natibon Amerikånu para u ma kondukta dos-åños na Prugråman Fino' CHamoru ni' para u ma adahi i fino'håya giya Mari'ånas.

Para u ma go'te este na cho'cho' gi iya Destriton San Diego, un dångkolon kumunidåt CHåmoru gi sanlagu. Kinonsiste i che'cho' na u ma fotma yan gai'adilånto dosse-membro na gurupu entre hinirasion siha ni' para u ma na'guaha kinalamten put nina'setben fotmåt na fina'nå'guen fino' håya para u ma na'takfe'na i fuetsan mamfifino', mannanaitai, yan manmåmangge' fino' CHamoru åntes di i finakpo'-ña na tiempo.

Esta, guaha dosse-membro ni' kinonsiste as Erika Boatman, si Dorothy Aguon Cedillo, si Delia Cruz, si Ed Diaz, si Carmen Duenas, si Joashawa Elsas, si Bino San Nicolas Jones, si Diana Jordan, si Debbie Lizama-Blas, si Betsy Salas, si Joseph Salas yan si Alfonsina Tina San Nicolas. Gine'hilulu'i i prugråma as Randy Camacho yan inasisiste as Brienda Maanao Diaz.

Manhuhunta i gurupu para u ma planeha i hinanao-ña yan u taimanu ma susedi i prugråma sigun ginen plånon kinalamten gigon monhåyan i mamaila' na såkkan. Put fin, dinira idåt-ñiha i gurupu desdeki disi ocho asta nomåsdi sisenta åños ya mandadanña' rigulåt na tiempo gi iya Guma' Sons and Daughters of Guam gi i kumunidåt San Diego gi kantidån ora siha gi kada tinago' Såbalu.

Maolek entension-ña i gurupu ya gråsihas na ma nåna'i ånimu i fino'-ta tåtkumu malilingu lokkue' entre Mañamoru ni' manggaige gi i sanlagon Estådos Unidos ya maneståba guihi desdeki singkuenta yan kåsi sisenta na såkkan ni' kumontrebubuyi na u manminoriha i taotao Guåhan tåtkumu CHamoru siha gi i isla.

Håfa diniseha para u hago' i Gurupon PITI gi iya San Diego nu este na prugråma? Kumeke'ilekña na para u fanachetton håle' inafa'maolek para i mangahuhulo' na hinirasion ni' ayu ha' ma tungo' put i kadenan Mari'ånas håfa hiningok-ñiñiha ginen mañaina yan mamparentes. Kumeke'ilekña ta'lo na u ma na'lå'la' i fino' taotao ni' kulan ha tutuhon mumalingu gi kåsi maloffan trenta åños na tiempo ya ha pega i fino' håya na dañuyan kontiempo.

Gi iya Guåhan, sigi ha' kumahulo' i tiniffong taotao ni' ti mamfifino' CHamoru esta ya este kumontrebubuyi i finatai putfin gi i lengguåhi. Gi iya CNMI, put mås iya Sa'ipan, tumaiguiguini esta i tinaisetbe-ña entre i mangahuhulo' na manhoben Mañamoru. Ha kontenuha este siempre soluki guaha prugråma siha ni' u fanma adilantuyi para i manetehnan na sopblan i kotturan manaotao tåno', sa' sigi ha' pumoddong i tinaisetbe-ña ya alos uttemo senmalingu gi kåsi 2040 na såkkan sigun ginen inestudion inilao siha gi parehu Guåhan yan iya Estådos Unidos.

Maskeseha bula na fifino' yan i'ilao ma estutudia i fino' håya para tiningo' yan inadahi, lameggai na fuetsa nisisåriu u kahulo' ya u tutuhon gi mismo guma' CHamoru siha sa' debidi u ma empåtte este gi i famagu'on yan famagu'on-ñiha. Debidi todu u fangalamten era ki u lå'la' i fino' CHamoru.

Sigun gi eksperensiå-ku, hagas yu' di hu supok gi kinalamten ma go'te-ña i fino'-ta ya dinira esta nomåsdi tres na dekådu na tiempo. Sumaonao yu' gi iya Nasion CHamoru; i Inetnon Lalåhen Guåhan; i IMMECHA, tåtkumu un inetnon mañaina yan manma'estra/tro para minantienen fino' CHamoru; i Enstetot Fino' yan Kotturan CHamoru; iya Asusiasion Dos kottura Dos lengguåhen Islan Pasifiku siha (PIBBA); ya manayuda yu' fumotma i CHIN na inetnon tåtkumu ma tungo' na Chamorro Linguists International Network ni' ma tutuhon gi iya Bremen, Germany gi 2009 na såkkan; i Ta Tuge', i Fino' Håya, Inc.; yan i Asusiasion Ginen I Hila' I Maga'taotao Siha.

Put mås, fueradi hu fa'nå'gue i fino' CHamoru gi i unibetsedåt, hu ekstende lokkue' setbisio-ku para atbisot para i Galaide' Notte Mari'ånas yan Mañe'lon CHamoru. Inetnon para estodiånte siha este i dos gi iya Unibetsedåt Guåhan. Hu ayuda umestapblesa i sesteman fina'nå'guen fino' CHamoru lokkue' para åmko' siha gi iya Kulehon Kumunidåt Guåhan.

Sumaonao yu' gi komferensian CHamoru ni' ma go'te gi iya Guåhan yan Sa'ipan.

Lalameggai ha' debidi u ma cho'gue para i inadahen fino' håya. Maskeseha gaige i fuetsa gi ma go'te-ña, debi na u ma kalamtini i fuetsa para ma uså-ña. Debidi u ma cho'gue este kada diha. Debidi u guaha kinonsiste para inadahen i fino'-ta ya u ma prisenta este guatu gi i kumunidåt.

Desde egge', estoria, po'ema, kånta yan lepblo siha ni' hu tuge', i kompetasion fino'-ta ni' hu arekla, i Prugråman i Halaihai gi iya Redion Pupbleko KPRG 89.3FM, i prugråman dimimoria ni' ma prisenta nu i estodiånte-ku siha gi iya KGTF-TV Channel 12, i Ferian Huegu yan Hugeti, i Ferian Fina'hechuran Unai, i Ferian Estoria yan Kånta siha, yan kontodu fina'egge' put Hinasson Lina'la', guaha lameggai na ideha yan prugråma siha ni' siña manma cho'gue. Nisisåriu ha' fuetsa, kostumbren chine'gue, yan minalago' para u ma kalamtini este siha.

Lao, ha konne' yu' guatu gi un hinasso na siña ha' pumosipble este siha yanggen guaha fondon salåppe'. Hunggan, salåppe' gof empottånte para u fanma cho'gue este siha. Este, tåddong yan takhilo' na chinanda. Humuyong dångkolo na inabiba para iya Hurao, Inc. yan På'a Taotao Tåno' sa' ma sodda'i fondon salåppe' para u ma na'posipble kantidån prugråma yan aktebedåt.

Lokkue', bai hu nå'i este na bendesion guatu gi iya Gurupon PITI gi iya San Diego. Minaolek suette para este na gurupu ni' ma na'magåhet i inadahen fino' håya para i Mañamoru gi iya San Diego. Biba CHamoru!

Imel Peter R. Onedera giya peteronedera@gmail.com.

Speaking Impossibility

I often write that I love to collect “impossible things.” Some might call them miracles, moments that take your breath away, things that are so inspiring in the way they defy some expectation or some assumption. Impossibility is a very intriguing concept; it is a way of talking about something you can’t actually talk about. It is a way of attempting to put a face, a name on some fundamental glitch or gap in the human experience, something beyond our ability to comprehend or integrate safely into our consciousness. Impossibility is all about the things which cannot happen, but also about the things we can’t imagine happening. It is a realm of terror and fear, but also of things that inspire us to no end.

The Chamorro language is one place where we see regularly the tragic taking place, as the language becomes less and less spoken, yet also the miraculous, the impossible take place, as people work tirelessly to attempt to bring it back to health. In March I had the privilege of being a judge for the 8th Annual Chamorro Language Competition held at the University of Guam, and this was one such place where I was awed to see the impossible made possible, right before my eyes. What I witnessed there, ha gof pacha’ i korason-hu, it truly touched my heart. This event was attended by dozens of schools from across the Marianas Islands and featured students of all ages and ethnicities, not only speaking and singing in Chamorro, but also displaying it proudly (or sometimes shyly) to thousands of cheering family members. It was not an experience I’ll soon forget.

Although I am a fluent speaker of the Chamorro language, I only learned as an adult through speaking to my grandparents and taking classes at the University of Guam. Like most people in my generation, we have felt so deeply in our lives the pain of language loss and alienation, where we were not taught our native tongue as children. Many might argue that the Chamorro language is esta kumekematai, already close to dying, especially when we see very few young people speaking, using or even proud to know the language. For generations after World War II, the language was slowly stripped of most of its social value, and so we live in a Guam today, where relatively few people, young and old, truly feel that there is any value in learning or speaking Chamorro.

But this is why the Chamorro Language Competition is so important; because it is helping to re-instill value into the Chamorro language, which is part of the sacred heritage of these islands. At the event, you see thousands of children put their time, energy, their hearts and souls into learning to speak sometimes just a few sentences, or the lyrics to a song, or even entire speeches. They display their poems, songs and stories in front of their families and thousands of others in a crowded auditorium. To have so many people gathered together to celebrate the perpetuation of the Chamorro language and to have children compete and brandish their skills to all, is something that a generation ago was unfathomable. It was something that few could conceive of happening or would want to happen. It is so drastically different from just a few decades ago, where the idea of having a Chamorro Language Competition would have been derided and attacked by the community as handicapping our students and their ability to speak English properly. The impossible has happened right before our eyes. The flow of history which was once against the Chamorro language, that made it seem inevitable that it would die and be erased to make way for English, has been slowed and is reversing. We are now not only celebrating the language in word alone, but also through deeds such as this event.

What is most inspirational about this competition is that it is still in its early stages, and it is helping build the foundation for the eventual return of the Chamorro language. The value that it gives even for just that one day, of giving children and families a place where they can feel intense pride at using and hearing the Chamorro language, that can grow into so much more. Should this competition be held regularly, it can be the foundation of more events of the similar intent, providing a space for speaking and celebrating the language.

Hiniyong i Kompetasion Fino' Chamoru

Estague i mangganna' siha gi i Mina'ocho na Kompetasion Fino' Chamoru ni' masusedi March 08, 2011 giya i Unibetsedat Guahan.


ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS

Spelling – Kindergarten through Second Grade

1. Gold:  Jeremiah Hofschneider, Tinian Elementary School, Tinian
2. Silver:  Pedro Cruz, Mount Carmel Catholic School, Guam
3. Bronze:  Alisa Gatharngeg, Gregorio T. Camacho Elementary School, Saipan

Drawing – Kindergarten through Second Grade

1. Gold:  Heidi N. Tang, Saint Anthony Catholic School, Guam
2. Silver:  Janine F. Miller, Saint Anthony Catholic School, Guam
3. Bronze:  Elijah J. Lizama, St. Anthony School, Guam

Children’s Choir – Kindergarten through Second Grade

1. Gold:  Mount Carmel Catholic School, Guam
2. Silver:  Inarajan Elementary School, Guam
3. Bronze:  Saint Anthony Catholic School, Guam

Spelling – Third Grade through Fifth Grade

1. Gold:  Thomas William DLC Benavente, Kagman Elementary School, Saipan
2. Silver:  Darlene Ferrer, Maria A. Ulloa Elementary School, Guam
3. Bronze:  Josiah Quitugua, BP Carbullido Elementary School, Guam

Drawing – Third Grade through Fifth Grade

1. Gold:  Dana Dalmacio, Saint Anthony Catholic School, Guam
2. Silver:  Mikaela Bumagat, Saint Anthony Catholic School, Guam
3. Bronze:  Jennifer Muna, Saintt Anthony School, Guam

Storytelling – Third Grade through Fifth Grade

1. Gold:  Keilani Barcinas, Sinapalo Elementary School, Rota
2. Silver:  Breanna Camacho, Gregorio T. Camacho Elementary School, Saipan
3. Bronze:  Keith Gerard M. Villagomez, Kagman Elementary School, Saipan

Children’s Choir – Third Grade through Fifth Grade

1. Gold:  BP Carbullido Elementary School, Guam
2. Silver:  JQ San Miguel Elementary School, Guam
3. Bronze:  Tinian Elementary School, Guam

MIDDLE SCHOOLS

Oratorical

1. Gold:  Kimberly Camacho, Chacha Oceanview Junior High School, Saipan
2. Silver:  Pamela Barcinas, Grace Christian Academy, Tinian
3. Bronze:  Jezreelyn Bulaklak, Gregorio T. Camacho Elementary School, Saipan

Poetry Recitation

1. Gold:  Jeremiah Cruz, Tinian Elementary School, Tinian
2. Silver:  Cecilia Fitial, Grace Christian Academy, Tinian
3. Bronze: Charita Quitaro, Gregorio T. Camacho Elementary School, Saipan

Essay

1. Gold:  Jezreelyn Bulaklak, Gregorio T. Camacho Elementary School, Saipan
2. Silver:  Robert Marmito, Gregorio T. Camacho Elementary School, Saipan
3. Bronze:  Cecilia Evangelista, Mount Carmel Catholic School, Guam

Choral Reading

1. Gold:  Grace Christian Academy, Tinian
2. Silver:  Tinian Elementary School, Tinian
3. Bronze:  Mount Carmel Catholic School, Guam

Chant

1. Gold:  Saint Francis Catholic School, Guam
2. Silver:  Oceanview Middle School, Guam
3. Bronze:  Mount Carmel Catholic School, Guam


HIGH SCHOOLS


Oratorical

1. Gold:    Megan Cruz, Tinian High School, Tinian
2. Silver:  Ramon Barcinas, John F. Kennedy High School, Guam
3. Bronze:  Brandee Faith Mendiola, Rota High School, Rota

Proficiency

1. Gold:  Ramon Barcinas, John F. Kennedy High School, Guam
2. Silver:  Blaine Mesngon, Rota High School, Rota
3. Bronze:  Realynn C. Palacios, Tinian High School, Tinian

Poetry Recitation

1. Gold:  Maisie Mesngon, Rota High School, Rota
2. Silver:  Brianna Torres, Southern High School, Guam
3. Bronze:  Mary M. Hocog, Tinian High School

Male Singer

1. Gold:  Christopher Cruz, Southern High School, Guam
2. Silver:  Shiabe Pangelinan, Simon Sanchez High School, Guam
3. Bronze:  Byron Mafnas, George Washington High School, Guam

Female Singer

1. Gold:  Cloe Hofschneider, Tinian High School, Tinian
2. Silver:  Javil Manglona, Rota High School, Rota
3. Bronze:  Caroline Hidalgo, George Washington High School, Guam

Song With Dance

1. Tinian High School, Tinian
2. John F. Kennedy High School, Guam
3. Southern High School, Guam


Dramatic Cultural Interpretation

1. Gold:  Tinian High School, Tinian

Kuatton Riferensian Fino' Chamoru

Ginnen Si Sinot Pedro Onedera, Profesot Fino' Chamoru giya i Unibetsedat Guahan:

Ma agågangi hao

Your presence is requested
Para un atendi i
to attend the

Siremoñan Initot Leston
para i
Kuåtton Rifirensian Fino’ CHamoru

CHamoru Language Reference Room
Ribbon Cutting Ceremony

gi Sabalu, diha 15 gi Ineru 2011
on Saturday, January 15, 2011

Gi alas 3 gi despues di talo’åni

3:00 p.m.
gi iya Unibetsedåt Guåhan
held at the University of Guam
Sentan Inilao Lugåt Maikrunisia
Micronesia Area Research Center
Prinisenta nu i:
Presented to you by:
Klas Inentalo’ 2010 CHamoru Ilimentåriu II
2010 Elementary CHamoru II Intercession Class

*****************


Students enrolled in the Fall Intercession class of CM102 Elementary Chamorro II class at the University of Guam have established a Chamorro Language Documents Reference Room at the Micronesian Area Research Center.

For decades, emphasis has been on the acquisition of Spanish language documents that have been housed at the center says assistant professor of Chamorro language, Peter R. Onedera

Little effort has been done to collect documents too that have been written in the Chamorro language and it is timely that the same consideration be given to archive many works that have gone unnoticed and uncollected through the years.

One chief aim for the project is to make available these written works to researchers who will devote time to the linguistic value of the indigenous language.

Additional areas that can benefit are orthography, semantics, word origins, antecedents, grammar, lexicons, and other language areas vital to the survival of Chamorro as a member of the Austronesian family of languages. Onedera says this has largely been lacking in the field of academia and the collection of written works in the Chamorro language will prove valuable as many researchers, particularly the Chamorro Linguistics International Network that was established with Dr. Robert A. Underwood, Rosa Salas Palomo and Onedera as original founding members.

The organization is based at the University of Bremen in Germany and includes members from many countries spanning Europe to the Caribbean, the United States and Asia.

Individuals, organizations, government agencies, private owners and collectors of Chamorro language memorabilia, as well as those now living in the mainland United States are invited and encouraged to provide copies that range from personal letters, journals, diaries, essays, compositions, books, poetry, lyrics, music, chants, proverbs, booklets, brochures, annual reports, manuscripts, political pamphlets, posters, project proposals, recipes, medicinal and herbal treatment, historical anecdotes, advertisements, legends, myths, stories, public events, organizational charts, ceremonies, religious activities, family tree information, novena books, bibles, guidebooks and other literary materials that are written in Chamorro and can be housed in the reference room at MARC.

This appeal is also extended to the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas and those living around the globe says Onedera.

Anyone wishing to contribute to the project may email Onedera at onedera@uguam.uog.edu or ponedera53@yahoo.com. His office phone number is 1-671-735-2808.

Chamorro Language Forum and Mini-Hatch Act

Professor: students' freedom of speech violated
Posted: Oct 22, 2010 4:22 PM
KUAM
by Lannie Walker

Guam - A professor at the University of Guam is saying students' rights to free speech may have been violated. Professor of Chamorro Studies Peter Onedera says he has held Chamorro language senatorial and gubernatorial forums since 1998, inviting candidates from all parties to participate.

As part of the exercise students are asked to acquire political signs and posters of the participants to be displayed in the hall way of the lecture hall where the forums are held. "For the first time ever during this forum our acting associate dean on Wednesday - mind you, this is Wednesday after the forum had taken place on Tuesday - told me that the posters had to come down because it is in violation of the Mini-Hatch Act," he said.

The Mini-Hatch Act prohibits the solicitation of political candidates by government employees. Onedera says no candidates were being endorsed and says he feels he is being singled out.

KUAM News spoke with dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences Dr. James Sellman, who ordered the signs be taken down. He says he was erring on the side of caution and that the signs were left up when the forums were not in process. Sellman adds he does encourage the political debates.

Onedera tells us he has written to UOG president Dr. Robert Underwood about the matter but has not yet received a reply.