Pre-contact Guam
Guam's legendary mermaid, Sirena, lived in Agana during Spanish times near the Minondo River where fresh spring waters dividing the city of Agana met the ocean at the river's mouth (Bicana) not so far from the site of the statue above. She loved the water and was known to swim whenever she could steal a moment from her chores to satisfy her greatest pleasure.
One fateful day, Sirena's mother sent her to get coconut shells to be used as coal for the iron. Oblivious to time and duty, Sirena couldn't resist the refreshing river. There she swam while her mother called impatiently. Sirena's godmother happened to be visiting, and as her mother angrily cursed her daughter with the words, "Since Sirena loves the water more than anything, she should become a fish", her Nina (godmother) quickly interjected, "leave the part of her that belongs to me".
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Duhendes
Many years ago, there were some little people who lived in the jungles of Guam. They
enjoyed playing tricks on people, especially children and very young babies.
If the very young children or older children entered the jungles, the Duhendes would
put a curse on them.
One such curse made a child unable to talk until the curse was broken.
Another trick was to cover the child with a banana leaf so he would become very tiny.
The only cure for these curses was to spank the child with an old lady's blessing belt.
The children of Guam believe that the Duhendes still roam the jungles. The youngsters
will not stray from their homes until they have grown up.
So, beware! If you should wander into the jungles of Guam, you may have the curse
of the Duhendes put on YOU!
Malagua’i, was a powerful chief of Tomhom, in the north of Guahan. He came to Inalahan in his canoe to challenge Gadao. Upon beaching his canoe on the bayside, he met a man whom he mistook as a servant or assistant to Gadao. The man was in fact, Gadao; but he continued to pretend to be Gadao’s assistant and invited Malagua’i to sit and eat while they awaited Gadao’s return.
The Legend of Gadao
Puntan yan Fu'una
Puntan and Fu’una are the Chamorro creation gods. Puntan, a male, and Fu’una, a female, are brother and sister. The account of their creation of the world constitutes one of the most important oral histories of the Chamorro people. Because the account has been passed along through oral tradition, there are varying versions of the story.
According to the Chamorro people, a very long time ago, Puntan and Fu’una devised a plan in which their supernatural forces would be put to extremely powerful use. Puntan instructed his sister to take apart his body and create the parts of the world. One of his eyes would become the sun, and the other would be transformed into the moon. Puntan’s eyebrows would become rainbows. His back would become the earth.
Fu’una had supernatural powers of her own. She used her energy and spirit to bring to life the parts of her brother’s body that now formed the world. With her power, she made the sun shine and the earth blossom. After she completed her task of bringing new life to Puntan’s body parts, Fu’una decided to create life out of her body, as she had her brother’s. She threw her body into the earth and created Fouha Rock, sometimes called Creation Point. Out of Fouha Rock, the first human beings emerged. This rock can be found close to Umatac Bay in the southern part of Guam.