History of Guam
The history of Guam starts with the early arrival around 2000 BC of Austronesian people known today as the Chamorro Peoples. The Chamorus then developed a "pre-contact" society, that was colonized by the Spanish in the 17th century. The present American rule of the island began with the 1898 Spanish–American War. Guam's history of colonialism is the longest among the Pacific islands.
Guam prior to European contact
Migrations
The Mariana Islands were the first islands settled by humans in Remote Oceania. Incidentally it is also the first and the longest of the ocean-crossing voyages of the Austronesian peoples into Remote Oceania, and is separate from the later Polynesian settlement of the rest of Remote Oceania. They were first settled around 1500 to 1400 BC by migrants departing from the Philippines.Archeological studies of human activity on the islands has revealed potteries with red-slipped, circle-stamped and punctate-stamped designs found in the Mariana Islands dating between 1500 and 1400 BC. These artifacts show similar aesthetics to pottery found in Northern and Central Philippines, the Nagsabaran pottery, which flourished during the period between 2000 and 1300 BC.
Comparative and historical linguistics also indicate that the Chamoru language is most closely related to the Indonesian Malayan subfamily of the Austronesian languages, instead of the Oceanic subfamily of the languages of the rest of Remote Oceania.
Mitchondrial DNA and whole genome sequencing of the Chamoru people strongly support Philippine ancestry. Genetic analysis of pre-Latte period skeletons in Guam also show that they do not have Melanesian ancestry which rules out origins from the Bismarck Archipelago, New Guinea, or eastern Indonesia. The Lapita culture itself is younger than the first settlement of the Marianas, indicating that they originated from separate migration voyages.
Nevertheless, DNA analysis also shows a close genetic relationship between ancient settlers of the Marianas and early Lapita settlers in the Bismarck Archipelago. This may indicate that both the Lapita culture and the Marianas were settled by direct migrations from the Philippines, or that early settlers from the Marianas voyaged further southwards into the Bismarcks and reconnected with the Lapita people.
The Marianas also later established contact and received migrations from the Caroline Islands at around the first millennium CE. This brought new pottery styles, language, genes, and the hybrid Polynesian breadfruit.
The period 900 to 1700 CE of the Marianas, immediately before and during the Spanish colonization, is known as the Latte period. It is characterized by rapid cultural change, most notably by the massive megalithic latte stones. These were composed of the haligi pillars capped with another stone called tasa. These served as supports for the rest of the structure which was made of wood. Remains of structures made with similar wooden posts have also been found. Human graves have also been found in front of latte structures. The Latte period was also characterized by the introduction of rice agriculture, which is unique in the pre-contact Pacific Islands.
The reasons for these changes are still unclear, but it is believed that it may have resulted from a third wave of migrants from maritime Southeast Asia. Comparisons with other architectural traditions makes it likely that this third migration wave were again from the Philippines, or from eastern Indonesia, all of which have a tradition of raised buildings with capstones. Interestingly, the word haligi is also used in various languages throughout the Philippines; while the Chamoru word guma closely resembles the Sumba word uma.
Ancient Chamoru society
Most of what is known about Pre-Contact Chamorus comes from legends and myths, archaeological evidence, Jesuit missionary accounts, and observations from visiting scientists like Otto von Kotzebue and Louis de Freycinet.When Europeans first arrived on Guam, Chamoru society roughly fell into three classes: matao, achaot, and mana'chang. The matao lived in the coastal villages, which meant they had the best access to fishing grounds while the mana'chang lived in the interior of the island. Matao and mana'chang rarely communicated with each other, and matao often used achaot as a go-between.
There were also "makhanas" and "suruhanus", skilled in healing and medicine. Belief in spirits of ancient Chamorros called Taotao Mona still persists as remnant of pre-European society. Early European explorers noted the sakman, the Chamoru fast sailing vessel used for trading with other islands of Micronesia.
Latte
The latte stones were not a recent development in Contact Chamoru society. The latte stone consists of a head and a base shaped out of limestone. Like the Easter Island Moai statues, there is plenty of speculation over how this was done by a society without machines or metal, but the generally accepted view is that the head and base were etched out of the ground by sharp adzes and picks, and carried to the assembly area by an elaborate system of ropes and logs. The latte stone was used as a part of the raised foundation for a magalahi house, although they may have also been used for canoe sheds.Archaeologists using carbon-dating have broken Pre-Contact Guam history into three periods: "Pre-Latte" "Transitional Pre-Latte", and "Latte". Archaeological evidence also suggests that Chamoru society was on the verge of another transition phase by 1521, as latte stones became bigger.
Assuming the stones were used for chiefly houses, it can be argued that Chamoru society was becoming more stratified, either from population growth or the arrival of new people. The theory remains tenuous, however, due to lack of evidence, but if proven correct, will further support the idea that Pre-Contact Chamorus lived in a vibrant and dynamic environment.
Spanish era
Magellan's first encounter with Guam
The first known contact between Guam and Europeans occurred with the arrival of a Spanish expedition led by Ferdinand Magellan. His three-ship fleet arrived on March 6, 1521, after a long voyage across the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, from Spain. History credits the village of Umatac as his landing place, but drawings from the navigator's diary suggest that Magellan may have landed in Tumon in northern Guam. The expedition had started out in Spain with five ships. By the time they reached the Marianas, they were down to three ships and barely half the crew, due to storms, disease, and mutiny in one ship.When Magellan's fleet arrived at Guam, they were greeted by hundreds of small outrigger canoes that appeared to be flying over the water due to their considerable speed. These outrigger canoes were called proas and resulted in Magellan naming Guam Islas de las Velas Latinas. Antonio Pigafetta wrote in his account that the name was "Island of Sails".
Tired and hungry from their long voyage, the crew prepared to go ashore and get food and water. However, the Chamorus had a different concept of ownership, based on subsistence living, and were very excited by the appearance of these strange vessels. The Chamorus canoed out to the ships and began helping themselves to everything that was not nailed down to the deck of the galleons. "The aboriginals were willing to engage in barter... Their love of gain overcame every other consideration."
Pigafetta wrote that the inhabitants "entered the ships and stole whatever they could lay their hands on," including "the small boat that was fastened to the poop of the flagship." "Those people are poor, but ingenious and very thievish, on account of which we called those three islands Islas de los Ladrones."
After a few shots were fired from the Trinidad's big guns, the natives were frightened off from the ship and retreated into the surrounding jungle. Magellan was eventually able to obtain rations and offered iron, a highly prized material, in exchange for fresh fruits, vegetables, and water. Details of this visit, the first in history between the Spanish and a Pacific island people, come from Pigafetta's journal.
Spanish colonization
Despite Magellan's visit, Guam was not officially claimed by Spain until 1565 by Miguel Lopez de Legazpi. However, the island was not actually colonized until the 17th century.On June 15, 1668, the galleon San Diego arrived at the island of Guam. Jesuit missionaries led by Diego Luis de San Vitores arrived on Guam to introduce Christianity and develop trade. The Spanish taught the Chamorus to cultivate maize, raise cattle, and tan hides, as well as to adopt western-style clothing. They also introduced the Spanish language and culture. Once Christianity was established, the Catholic Church became the focal point for village activities, as in other Spanish cities. Since 1565, Guam had been a regular port-of-call for the Spanish galleons that crossed the Pacific Ocean from Mexico to the Philippines.
Chief Quipuha was the maga'lahi, or high ranking male, in the area of Hagåtña when the Spanish landed there in 1668. Quipuha welcomed the missionaries and consented to be baptized by Fr. San Vitores as Juan Quipuha. Quipuha granted the lands on which the first Catholic Church in Guam was constructed in 1669. Chief Quipuha died in 1669 but his policy of allowing the Spanish to establish a base on Guam had important consequences for the future of the island. It also facilitated the Manila Galleon trade.
A few years later, Fr. San Vitores and his assistant, Pedro Calungsod, were killed by Chief Mata'pang of Tomhom, allegedly for baptizing the Chief's baby girl without the Chief's consent. This was in April 1672. Many Chamorus at the time believed baptisms killed babies: because priests would baptize infants already near death, baptism seemed to many Chamorus to be the cause of death. The death of Quipuha, and the murder of San Vitores and Calungsod, led to a number of conflicts. Captain Juan de Santiago started a campaign to conquer the island, which was continued by the successive commanders of the Spanish forces. The Spanish-Chamorro Wars on Guam began in 1670 over growing tensions with the Jesuit mission, with the last large-scale uprising in 1683. After his arrival in 1674, Captain Damian de Esplana ordered the arrest of rebels who attacked the population of certain towns. Hostilities eventually led to the destruction of villages such as Chochogo, Pepura, Tumon, Sidia-Aty, Sagua, Nagan, and Ninca. Starting in June 1676, the first Spanish Governor of Guam, Capt. Francisco de Irrisarri y Vinar, controlled internal affairs more strictly than his predecessors in order to curb tensions. He also ordered the construction of schools, roads, and other infrastructure. In 1680, Captain Jose de Quiroga arrived and continued some of the development projects started by his predecessors. He also continued the search for the rebels who had killed Father San Vitores, resulting in campaigns against the rebels which were hiding out in some islands, eventually leading to the deaths. of Matapang, Hurao, and Aguarin. Quiroga brought some natives from the northern islands to Guam, ordering the population to live in a few large villages. These included Jinapsan, Umatac, Pago, Agat, and Inarajan, where he built a number of churches. By July 1695, Quiroga had completed the conquest of Guam, Rota, Tinian, and Aguigan. Intermittent warfare, plus the typhoons of 1671 and 1693, and in particular the smallpox epidemic of 1688, reduced the Chamorro population from 50,000 to 10,000, finally to less than 5,000.
During the course of the Spanish administration of Guam, lower birth rates and diseases reduced the population from 12,000 to roughly 5,000 by 1741. After 1695, Chamorus settled in five villages: Hagåtña, Agat, Umatac, Pago, and Fena. During this historical period, Spanish language and customs were introduced in the island and Catholicism became the predominant religion. The Spanish built infrastructures such as roads and ports, as well as schools and hospitals. Spanish and Filipinos, mostly men, increasingly intermarried with the Chamorus, particularly the new cultured or "high" people or gentry of the towns. In 1740, Chamorus of the Northern Mariana Islands, except Rota, were moved from some of their home islands to Guam.