Chamorro

Micronesia: The islands of Kiribati, Guam, Nauru, the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, Palau, and the Federated States of Micronesia (Yap, Chuuk, Pohnpei, and Kosrae, all in the Caroline Islands). The Chamorro people or Chamoru people are the indigenous people of the Mariana Islands, which include the American territory of Guam and the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in Micronesia. Today, significant Chamoru populations also exist in several U.S. states including Hawaii, California, Washington, Texas and Nevada. According to the 2000 Census, approximately 65,000 people of Chamoru ancestry live on Guam and another 19,000 live in the Northern Marianas. Another 93,000 live outside the Marianas ( in Hawaii and West/Pacific coast of USA ). The Chamoru are primarily of Austronesian stock. Most Chamorros are Roman Catholic and few in the Marianas still maintain some customs and beliefs from the time before the first European conquests. Some residents of the Marianas will still ask permission from ancestral spirits before entering parts of jungles. Traditional healers called suruhanas are still greatly respected for their knowledge of herbal treatments and spirits. Before Spanish colonization, Chamoru life centered on one's clan. Today, large extended families remain central to life in the Marianas.