UOG renames semesters, uses Chamorro terms

The University of Guam has renamed the semesters in its academic year to the names of the seasons in Chamorro.

The move reflects the Chamorro heritage of the island and the island's tropical environment, a release from the university states. The renaming was spearheaded by UOG President Robert Underwood, who has been an advocate for the Chamorro language for many years.

The university welcomed nearly 4,000 students for its first fanuchånan semester, which replaces the fall semester. The spring semester will be the fañomnåkan semester.

Fanuchånan means “a place for rain” and represents the rainy season. It runs from August to December. Fañomnåkan means “a place for sunshine” and represents the dry season. The semester runs from January to May.

“The CHamoru spirit and heritage of Unibetsedåt Guahan is also unique, and as a way to share this uniqueness with the world, our semesters have been renamed in the CHamoru language," Underwood said in the release.

The fall intersession has been renamed tinalo' which means “in the middle.” Summer sessions A, B, C are now finakpo' 1, 2, 3, which means “at the end.”

The university has also produced an explainer video about the change, learn more about the renaming on the UOG website at www.uog.edu.

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