Chamorro Months of the Year

When we want to talk about important events like birthdays and holidays we have to learn some very important words in CHamoru: the names of the months of the year. What’s great is that you have 12 opportunities out of the year to practice your Chamorro! So nihi! Let’s go and do this.

Here are the names of i mes siha gi sakkan (the months in the year).

Talking About Dates in Chamorro

Saying i fecha, or “the date”, in Chamorro is almost the same as in English except for a few details. Chamorro days are often preceded by the word dia (or diha), meaning “day”. Traditionally, the day came before the month, but now it is common to say it the English way as well. In both languages, the year always comes after the month and day, regardless of the order.

You can use the following patterns to help you write the date:

dia + number + gi + month + year

or

month + dia + number + year

Here are some examples:

How To Say Your Birthday

When you want to tell someone when your kumpleaños or ha’ånen mafañagu-mu (both mean birthday) is, you can say it in a few ways:

Ancient CHamoru Calendar

Before the Spanish arrived, the ancient Chamorros used a 13-month calendar based on the lunar cycle.