Connecting Chamorro Identity to Traditional Healing: A Suruhåna Apprentice’s Journey from the Diaspora to Guam

Title

Connecting Chamorro Identity to Traditional Healing: A Suruhåna Apprentice’s Journey from the Diaspora to Guam

Subject

Chamorro (Guam)
Indigenous medicine
Cultural heritage—Guam
Colonialism—Guam
Environmental justice

Description

Indigenous Chamorro medicine has adapted to incorporate practices from other cultures, yet it carries knowledge of pre-colonial Chamorro traditions since it has been passed down from one generation to the next. This thesis examines the effects of ongoing colonial legacies and modern challenges the Chamorro people of Guam face, in relation to the preservation of traditional Chamorro healing practices. During my studies in the Micronesian Studies Program at the University of Guam, I sought out and underwent a traditional Chamorro healer apprenticeship. Personal experiences from my apprenticeship with a traditional Chamorro healer, Rosalia Fejeran Mateo, also known as Mama Chai, enrich this narrative, providing insight into the cultural significance of Indigenous healing practices and the profound connection Chamorros have with their Indigenous lands. This work aims to contribute to the broader discourse on Indigenous rights and environmental justice, advocating for a balanced approach to development that respects cultural heritage and promotes sustainability. This research underscores the notion that everything is connected—culturally, environmentally, and historically—highlighting that the experiences of Chamorros in the Marianas and in the diaspora are all connected and cannot be understood independently. This thesis examines how the complex roles of spirituality, God, and knowledge of the natural environment and the human body all work together to embody what we know today as Åmot Chamorro “Chamorro medicine.”

Creator

Vinessa Pangelinan Dueñas

Publisher

University of Guam

Date

May 2024

Contributor

Michael Clement Jr., Chairperson Dr. Anne Hattori
Dr. David Atienza

Rights

Academic use permitted with proper attribution to author. Permission required for other uses, reproduction, or distribution.

Format

PDF

Language

en

Type

Thesis Manuscript

Identifier

SP 2024 Thesis_Dueñas V_Connecting Chamorro Identity

Citation

Vinessa Pangelinan Dueñas, “Connecting Chamorro Identity to Traditional Healing: A Suruhåna Apprentice’s Journey from the Diaspora to Guam,” University of Guam Digital Archives and Exhibitions, accessed November 14, 2024, https://uogguafak.omeka.net/items/show/9336.