Guam The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Guam:
Guam – organized, unincorporated territory of the United States of America that comprises the island of Guam in the western North Pacific Ocean.[1] It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government.[2] The island's capital is Hagåtña (formerly Agana). Guam is the largest and southernmost of the Mariana Islands. The Chamorros, Guam's indigenous inhabitants, first populated the island approximately 4,000 years ago.[citation needed] Discovered by the Spanish expedition of Ferdinand Magellan in 1521, the island has a long history of European colonialism beginning in the 16th century, and especially in 1668 with the arrival of Spanish settlers including Padre San Vitores, a Catholic missionary. Guam and the rest of the Mariana Islands were integrated in the Spanish East Indies since 1565. The island was a major stopover for Manila Galleons sailing from Acapulco, until 1815. Guam was taken over from Spain by the United States during the Spanish–American War in 1898. As the largest island in Micronesia and the only American-held island in the region before World War II, Guam was occupied by the Japanese between December 1941 and July 1944. Today, Guam's economy is mainly supported by tourism (primarily from Japan) and U.S. military bases.[3]
General reference
edit- Pronunciation: /ˈɡwɑːm/
- Common English country name: Guam
- Official English country name: The United States Territory of Guam
- Common endonym(s): List of countries and capitals in native languages
- Official endonym(s): List of official endonyms of present-day nations and states
- Adjectival(s): Guamanian
- Demonym(s):
- Etymology: Name of Guam
- ISO country codes: GU, GUM, 316
- ISO region codes: See ISO 3166-2:GU
- Internet country code top-level domain: .gu
Geography of Guam
edit- Guam is: a United States territory
- Location:
- Northern Hemisphere and Eastern Hemisphere
- Pacific Ocean
- North Pacific
- Time zone: Chamorro Standard Time (UTC+10)
- Extreme points of Guam
- High: Mount Lamlam 406 m (1,332 ft) – 11,377 meters above Challenger Deep
- Low: North Pacific Ocean 0 m
- Land boundaries: none
- Coastline: 125.5 km (78.0 mi)
- Population of Guam: 173,000 – 179th most populous country
- Area of Guam: 541 km2 (209 sq mi)
- Atlas of Guam
Environment of Guam
edit- Climate of Guam
- Renewable energy in Guam
- Geology of Guam
- Protected areas of Guam
- Superfund sites in Guam
- Wildlife of Guam
Natural geographic features of Guam
edit- Beaches in Guam
- Islands of Guam
- Lakes of Guam
- Mountains of Guam
- Rivers of Guam
- Valleys of Guam
- World Heritage Sites in Guam: None
Regions of Guam
editEcoregions of Guam
editAdministrative divisions of Guam
editNone
Municipalities of Guam
edit- Capital of Guam: Hagåtña
- Cities of Guam
Demography of Guam
editGovernment and politics of Guam
edit- Form of government: presidential representative democracy
- Capital of Guam: Hagåtña
- Elections in Guam
- Political parties in Guam
Branches of the government of Guam
editExecutive branch of the government of Guam
editLegislative branch of the government of Guam
editJudicial branch of the government of Guam
editForeign relations of Guam
editInternational organization membership
editThe United States Territory of Guam is a member of:[1]
- International Olympic Committee (IOC)
- Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC)
- Universal Postal Union (UPU)
Law and order in Guam
editLocal government in Guam
editHistory of Guam
editHistory of Guam, by period
edit- Geology of Guam
- Indigenous peoples
- First European contact, 1521–1668
- On March 6, 1521, three Spanish ships under the command of Fernão de Magalhães (Ferdinand Magellan) land on the Island of Guam after a seemingly endless eleven week voyage across the Pacific Ocean. Magalhães names the archipelago Las Isles de las Velas Latinas (The Islands of the Latine Sails). When the Spaniards refuse to pay for supplies, natives take iron from the ships. Magalhães renames the archipelago Las Islas de los Ladrones (The Islands of the Thieves).
- Spanish East Indies, 1565–(1668–1898)–1899
- Diego Luis de San Vitores leads the colonization of Guam, renaming the Chamorro archipelago Islas Marianas in honor of his patroness, Queen Mariana of Austria
- The Spanish-Chamorro Wars (1670-1683 on Guam) pacifies CHamoru resistance and solidifies Spanish control
- Guam becomes a major stopover for Spanish galleons en route to Manila, from Acapulco. A number of coastal forts are built to protect these ships, including Fort Soledad and Fort San Jose in Umatac.
- Spanish–American War, April 23 – August 12, 1898
- Spanish Empire declares war on the United States, April 23, 1898
- United States capture of Guam, June 20–21, 1898
- Treaty of Paris, December 10, 1898
- United States Territory of Guam, since December 10, 1898
- World War I, June 28, 1914 – November 11, 1918
- United States enters Great War on April 6, 1917
- World War II, September 1, 1939 – September 2, 1945
- United States enters Second World War on December 8, 1941
- Battle of Guam of 1941
- Battle of Guam of 1944
- Cold War, March 5, 1946 – December 25, 1991
- Korean War, June 25, 1950 – July 27, 1953
- Guam Organic Act, August 1, 1950
- World War I, June 28, 1914 – November 11, 1918
Culture of Guam
edit- Architecture of Guam
- Cuisine of Guam
- Festivals in Guam
- Languages of Guam
- Media in Guam
- National symbols of Guam
- People of Guam
- Public holidays in Guam
- Records of Guam
- Religion in Guam
- World Heritage Sites in Guam: None
Art in Guam
editSports in Guam
editEconomy and infrastructure of Guam
edit- Economic rank, by nominal GDP (2007): 150th (one hundred and fiftieth)
- Agriculture in Guam
- Banking in Guam
- Communications in Guam
- Companies of Guam
- Currency of Guam: Dollar
- Energy in Guam
- Mining in Guam
- Tourism in Guam
- Guam Stock Exchange
Infrastructure of Guam
editEducation in Guam
editSee also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b "Guam". The World Factbook. United States Central Intelligence Agency. July 2, 2009. Retrieved July 23, 2009.
- ^ "USDOI Office of Insular Affairs" Archived 2007-02-09 at the Wayback Machine U.S. Territories, Retrieved November 4, 2007.
- ^ Rogers, Robert F. (1995). Destiny's Landfall: A History of Guam. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press. ISBN 978-0-8248-1678-0.
External links
edit- Government
- Official Portal for the Island of Guam
- Office of the Governor
- Congresswoman Madeleine Z. Bordallo, Delegate, U.S. Congress
- Guam Customs and Quarantine Agency
- Guam Election Commission
- Guam Code Annotated
- Guam Department of Revenue and Taxation
- Guam's Original Webpage
- Invasive species
- (Potentially) Invasive plant species on Guam (info from the Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk project (PIER))
- Brown tree snake (Boiga irregularis) information from the Hawaiian Ecosystems at Risk project (HEAR)
- News
- Marianas Variety "Guam's only true independent news source"
- Pacific Daily News, A Gannett Newspaper
- KUAM, Guam's Primary News Channel
- "Pacific News Center - News You Can Trust
- Overviews
- allthingsguam A Guam History resource—virtual textbook, virtual workbook and more
- Guampedia, Guam's Online Encyclopedia
- U.S. Library of Congress - Portals to the World: Guam
- The World Factbook on Guam
- Guam Portal – Guam directory and internet portal.
- Military
- Commander, Naval Forces Marianas (COMNAVMAR) Guam
- Andersen Air Force Base (AAFB) Guam
- War in the Pacific - Liberation of Guam
- Congressional Testimony - Guam War Claims
- Tourism
- Others