NO REST FOR THE AWAKE - MINAGAHET CHAMORRO

 If anyone knows how I can contact Rodrigue Levesque, please let me know.  He researched, translated and published the History of Micronesia series, which is an amazing set of primary source documents dealing with Micronesia. It is a collection of information that has yet to be fully incorporated into how we tell the history of our islands.  The books, when they were published were gof guaguan, very expensive, at least $100 each. But they were massive. When I was a graduate student at UOG, spending time at the University of Guam Micronesian Area Research Center, I loved reading through the lepblon Levesque siha.  They featured completely different perspectives from the traditional or canonical history of the Marianas, but using not just the official histories or accounts of events, but also letters by priests, government officials, soldiers and sailors, that he was able to collect in his research.  A few years ago Levesque finished his History of Micronesia seri...

One of the earliest Chamoru translations of an American pop song I ever did.  I came across it recently while I was searching on some old external hard drives.  It is to the tune of the Coldplay song "Clocks"which came out in 2002.  I remember I had started translating the song, working to come up with some basic lyrics.  I was hindered in my translation by the fact that the title frankly, gi minagahet was weird or sucked in Chamoru.  Clocks, didn't make sense in Chamoru. It may barely make sense in English for the song gi minagahet.  "Reloh siha" mungga yu' nu enao lol.  This was very early in my Chamoru learning journey, I was functionally fluent, but still making mistakes all the time and my Chamoru sounded like it was stiff and dry, straight out of a grammar book, because I lacked the basic organic feeling of being part of a language community.  The ways that emerge sometimes for an individual, a family, a village, a people to build off of the...

No one ever fully knows a language, and that is always an interesting way of reminding people that a language is, first and foremost, a social organism. It connects people. It exists to connect and express connections.  But as no one ever fully knows a language, it means that even those who use it everyday are always still learning in the language. There is always more to know, as a language is always belong what a single person can know or do. One way that I have continued to learn and grow in the language is by translating songs from English, regularly into Chamoru. At this point, I've translated hundreds of pop songs, rock songs, hip hop songs, country, punk, alternative, emo, ska, at this point just about any genre you can imagine, I've probably translated at least one song from it, into the Chamoru language.  Sometimes I try to keep the original intention and metaphor of the song, other times I completely abandon it. Sometimes even the tune of the song itself, its flow ge...

  For fun, I used to take anime songs (gi Fino' Chapones) and translate them into Chamoru. Over the years I translated songs from Naruto, Gantz, Cromartie High School, Master Keaton, Evangelion, and Attack on Titan just to name a few. It was an exercise in expressing two things that I am very nerdy about. I hadn't thought about this in a long time though until earlier tonight when Youtube's next song randomness started playing anime theme songs. As I started to feel the chetnot nostalgia hit me, the kids asked what song is this? where is this from? When I described the plot of Evangelion to Sumåhi, her review, "wow sen na'triste enao (wow that is like incredibly depressing)." I told the kids about how I used to translate songs like this into Chamoru. When they asked why, I said, "Ya-hu fino' Chamoru, ya-hu este na kånta. Anggen hu pula' este gi mismo lenguahi-hu, hu na'latatahdong I siniente-ku put este. (I like Chamoru, I like this song. If I...

I met someone recently who asked me if I had read the story Thumbelina, and I was certain I had but a long long time ago. I could remember faint details, but not much. She told me that she had read it when she was young and reread it throughout the years. Eventually as she got out of an abusive and toxic long-term relationship she began to see more and more of her life through the imagery and metaphors of the story. I decided this week to reread it (and maybe read it with my kids). Revisiting the story, I can see why she felt it resonated so much with her. I am mulling over whether I should translate the story into Chamoru. I think it might work rather well. I remember my grandmother telling me a story of her mother's, about a boy who fell asleep and woke up a butterfly living in a flower. I'd probably call it " Si Dikike'."  Ta li'e' buente.  ***************************** Thumbelina by Hans Christian Andersen (1835) THERE was once a...

When my son Akli'e' and I played Assassin's Creed Black Flag (Åttelong na Bandera) together, we were both touched by the game's ending ballad, "Parting Glass," a famous Scottish farewell song. Even  after  I stopped playing it years ago, we still find ourselves singing to it in the car and referencing his favorite line from the song "for want of wit." Este uno gof ya-hu na huegon bideo. Ya hu hasso gi finakpo' annai makånta este na kånta, kulang tumåtanges yu'.  Over the years when we sing this song, my kids and I eventually added in our own Chamoru lyrics for it. I've pasted them below.  As I reflect back on the year that was 2019; the love, the pain and everything in between, this song was a beautiful way to bid it adios. ************************* The Parting Glass Of all the money there ere I had I spent it in good company Put todu i salape’ ni’ hu chule’ I manabok-hu hu gaståyi And all the harm that ere I ...

I haven't translated an English pop song into Chamorro in very long time. I was feeling nostalgic the other day and decided to translate "Sex and Candy" by Marcy's Playground. Note that the translation isn't meant to be literal and I changed things where I saw it appropriate in particular lines such as "disco candy" and "platform double suede." **************** --> Kichichi yan Bukåyu Humahaggan yu’ Guahu na maisa Åpmam na tiempo Para bai fanhasso Put Guahu Ya desnek gui’ Kulang mesgo’ yan minangnge’ Hu’u ayugue Mannginge’ yu’ Kichikichi yan bukåyu Håyi matata’chong Gi siyå-hu? Håyi mana’atan båba giya Guahu Nåna siempre Guinife ha’ este! Humahaggan yu’ Guahu na maisa Ya hu dafflokgue Kafe gumimen Ya duru manhasso yu’ Put Guahu Ya desnek gui’ Gi dogga’ na yore’ Hu’u ayugue Kulang tuban binakle Mannginge’ yu’ Kichikichi yan bukåyu Håyi matata’chong Gi siyå-hu? Hå...

The petition drive to protect language learning at UOG continues.  If you haven't signed the petition yet, please do so at this link . Here is the website for the UOG Language Drive , which is being spearheaded by myself and other UOG faculty to protect language learning at UOG in the face of GE requirement changes which could drastically affect language programs at UOG, in particular my program, Chamorro Studies.  Below is the petition statement for the UOG Language Drive, in Chamorro, Japanese, Tagalog, French, Spanish, Mandarin and English. ***************************** Kinalamten para Lenguahi Siha gi Unibetsedåt Guahan  I hinangai-ña este para u na’adilåntu yan u chonnek mo’na i fina’nå’guen lengguåhi siha gi Unibetsidåt Guåhan. Manmama’nånå’gue, manmane’eyak yan manmansesetbe i fafa’nå’gue siha yan i estudiånte siha gi UOG para u manteteini i takhilo’ na minetgot-ñiha i kottura-ña siha yan i guinaha-ña iya Micronesia. Ginen este, ...

Un diha siempre bai hu pula' este na betsu/kånta gi Fino' Chamorro! Lao esta ki ayu na diha, estague i palabrås-ña gi Fino' Frances yan Fino' Ingles. Achokka' matuge' este gi halom i kotturan Europa, siña uma'aya este na i estorian yan kotturan Chamorro. Achokka' i fina'tinas-ña i Españot ma kefunas i fuetsan i famalao'an Chamorro guini giya Guahan, sisiña ha' ta silebra siha, achokka' ti ta tungo' i mismo na'an-ñiha! ****************** Dictes moy où, n'en quel pays, Est Flora, la belle Romaine ; Archipiada, né Thaïs, Qui fut sa cousine germaine; Echo, parlant quand bruyt on maine Dessus rivière ou sus estan, Qui beauté eut trop plus qu'humaine? Mais où sont les neiges d'antan! Où est la très sage Heloïs, Pour qui fut chastré et puis moyne Pierre Esbaillart à Sainct-Denys? Pour son amour eut cest essoyne. Semblablement, où est la royne Qui commanda que Buridan Fust jetté en ung sac en Seine? Mais ...