from Lisiensan Ga’lago
“goaam” ~
“goam” ~
“islas de las velas latinas” (of lateen sails ~
“guan” “guana” ~
“islas de los ladrones” (of the thieves ~
“guåhan” “guajan” ~
“islas marianas”
(after the spanish queen ~
“bahan” “guhan” ~
“guacan” “isla de san juan” ~
“guaon”
“y guan”
“omiya jima” (great shrine island)
“guam”
“the first province
of the great ocean” ~
geographic absence ~
“the old census records show”
because who can stand on the reef
and name that below water and sky
imagined territory ~
“a spanish baptismal name and”
burnt villages
archipelago of
“chamoru last names drawn from
the lexicon of everyday language”
bone
carved word
~
“it is possible they changed
their last names throughout their lives”
remade : sovereign
Copyright Credit: Craig Santos Perez, "from Lisiensan Ga’lago" from From Unincorporated Territory [gumá]. Copyright © 2008 by Craig Santos Perez. Reprinted by permission of Omnidawn Publishing.