Chamorro Surnames

Chamorro surnames are those of the indigenous inhabitants of the Mariana Islands, a crescent-shaped archipelago in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, south-southeast of Japan. Today the Mariana Islands consist of two U.S. unincorporated territories, Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, the later a Commonwealth in political union with the United States. There is also a substantial Chamorro (also called Chamoru) population in the United States, concentrated in California, Washington state and in Hawaii^[1].

Chamorro history, society and cultureChamorro history, society and culture

The Chamorro people ("Chamorros") have a long and rich history. It is believed that they arrived in the Mariana Islands thousands of years ago from south east Asia. Their culture is a blend of indigenous traditions with Spanish, German, American and Japanese influences arising from their periods of administrative control over the Islands^[2].

This article provides a handy summary of early Chamorro life, society, beliefs and language. It discusses the impact on the Chamorros of the centuries of Spanish rule, the Japanese occupation during World War II and post-WW2 political developments. The article also highlights that the steady migration of Chamorros, especially young people, to the U.S. mainland is both diluting Chamorro identity and encouraging an effort by others in their community to preserve and promote Chamorro language and culture.

Common Chamorro surnamesCommon Chamorro surnames

As with many other indigenous peoples the Chamorros traditionally did not use surnames. Each person was known by a first name and sometimes their clan association. Family lineage was traced through oral history and clan association rather than hereditary surnames^[3]. Traditional Chamorro society was matrilineal and matriarchal. Children belonged to their mother’s clan and inherited her family name^[4].

Surnames are a product of the intrusion into their lands and society from wave after wave of foreign traders, missionaries, immigrants and administrators going back more than 500 years. The word Chamorro, as an ethnic identifier, is itself of Spanish origin^[5].

beach in Saipan — A view from Mañagaha Island, Saipan, Northern Mariana Islands.

When Spanish missionaries began to convert Chamorros to Christianity from the late 17^th century onwards they gave the converts a new first name (typically of a Christian saint and making the person's original Chamorro name their surname. As a result even close blood relatives ended up with different surnames. This makes researching Chamorro family trees over the period of Spanish rule particularly difficult^[6].

This article sets out the origin and meaning of Chamorro surnames first recorded in 18^th century Spanish censuses. Many early Chamorro surnames were descriptive or action words, such as Ge’hilu’ ("further up"), Tainahung ("never satisfied") and Mamaisa ("to be alone"). Some of these surnames survive today.

The article also lists additional surnames among the Chamorros which were first documented by American and German academics during the first half of the 20^th century and which reflected spelling and other changes to original Chamorro surnames which took place during the period of American Naval Administration (1899-1941).

Another article lists some of the most common Chamorro surnames today, derived from a Chamorro Roots Genealogy Project database comprising almost 330,000 names. Some of the most common are: