Editing Geography of Guam (section)

== Settlement patterns ==
{{further|Villages of Guam|List of census-designated places in Guam}}
[[File:Guam Population Density, 2000 (6171909873) (cropped).jpg|thumb|upright|A population density map of Guam, 2000]]
A 1668 description reported that there were approximately 180 [[Chamorro people|Chamoru]] villages on Guam with a total island population between 35,000 and 50,000.<ref name=NPS1>{{cite web |title=War in the Pacific National Historic Park: An Administrative History - Chapter 1: Before European Contact |url=https://www.nps.gov/parkhistory/online_books/wapa/adhi/adhi1.htm |website=National Park Service |access-date=22 June 2020 |date=8 May 2005 |archive-date=22 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200622000338/https://www.nps.gov/parkhistory/online_books/wapa/adhi/adhi1.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> The Spanish strategy of [[villagization]], called ''reducción'', which began in the [[Spanish-Chamorro Wars]], transferred the population to seven towns. These relocated people were forced to travel to work on distant farms and ranches, creating the ''lanchu'' system of farmsteading, which was to become a traditional part of Chamoru society well into the twentieth century.<ref name="Hezel">{{cite book |last1=Hezel |first1=Francis X. |title=When cultures clash: revisiting the 'Spanish-Chamorro Wars' |date=2015 |publisher=Richard F. Taitano Micronesian Area Research Center, University of Guam |isbn=978-1-935198-04-8 |url=https://www.academia.edu/23563686 |access-date=19 June 2020}}</ref>{{rp|48}}

A map from the early 1700s shows nearly 40 villages on Guam, mostly along the coastlines. The Spanish eventually emptied all of the northern and central villages of Guam, except for [[Hagåtña, Guam|Hagåtña]]. The population of Guam and the entire Northern Marianas, except for [[Rota (island)|Rota]], was moved to Hagåtña, and five southern villages: [[Agat, Guam|Agat]], [[Inarajan, Guam|Inarajan]], [[Merizo, Guam|Merizo]], [[Pago, Guam|Pago]] (which no longer exists), and [[Umatac, Guam|Umatac]].<ref name="Guampedia_villages">{{cite web |title=Guam Villages |url=https://www.guampedia.com/villages-heritage-sites-and-island-life/guams-villages/ |website=Guampedia |access-date=18 March 2021 |date=September 15, 2020 |archive-date=3 March 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210303150300/https://www.guampedia.com/villages-heritage-sites-and-island-life/guams-villages/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Meanwhile, outbreaks of [[infectious disease]] inflicted a terrible toll, which was accelerated by concentrating the population. The Chamoru population in 1689 was estimated at 10,000, a third to fifth of the number just 20 years previously.{{r|Hezel|p=70}}

The population changed little over the next two centuries. The population in 1901, after the American [[Capture of Guam]], was 9,676, with the majority located in Hagåtña and [[Sumay, Guam|Sumay]] on Apra Harbor. The population was 18,509 in 1930. The American Naval government build roads and schools in outlying areas in order to urge the population to spend time on their ranch lands and produce more agricultural products. There were eight municipalities approved by the Naval governor in the 1920s, Hagåtña, Agat, [[Asan, Guam|Asan]], Inarajan, Merizo, [[Piti, Guam|Piti]], Sumay and [[Yona, Guam|Yona]]. This increased to 15 in 1939.<ref name="Guampedia_resettlement">{{cite web |title=Resettlement Patterns Under American Rule |url=https://www.guampedia.com/resettlement-patterns-under-american-rule/ |website=Guampedia |publisher=Micronesian Archaeological Research Services |access-date=March 18, 2021 |date=October 15, 2019 |archive-date=April 24, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210424090550/https://www.guampedia.com/resettlement-patterns-under-american-rule/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

The devastation from the [[Battle of Guam (1941)|U.S. retaking of Guam]] in 1941 and subsequent military build-up of installations at the end of the [[Pacific War]] transformed the island's settlements. Two municipalities that disappeared entirely after the land became military bases were Machanao in the north and Sumay on Apra Harbor, which are now part of [[Naval Base Guam]]. The military government prohibited resettlement and rebuilding of Hagåtña, which held almost half of the pre-war population. The former residents of Hagåtña dispersed, mainly to their ''lanchus'' (ranches).<ref name="Guampedia_resettlement"/>

Once most of the wartime bases were built, northern Guam experienced sustained housing construction. The original location of [[Dededo, Guam|Dededo]] was bulldozed by the Americans to create [[Harmon Air Force Base]]. When the new location was devastated by [[Typhoon Karen]] in 1962 and [[Typhoon Olive (1963)|Typhoon Olive]] in 1963, the resulting federal aid sparked a construction boom that then resulted in the first large housing subdivisions.<ref>{{cite web |title=Dededo (Dededu) |url=https://www.guampedia.com/dededo-dedidu/ |website=Guampedia |access-date=18 March 2021 |date=January 10, 2021 |archive-date=22 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210122215009/https://www.guampedia.com/dededo-dedidu/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

The neighboring municipality of [[Yigo, Guam|Yigo]] on the northeast of the island has experienced dramatic population growth. In 1940, there were about 40 families living in the area. By the beginning of the 21st century, it was Guam's second most populous village after Dededo.<ref name="GP_Yigo">{{cite web |last1=Clement |first1=Michael R. Jr. |title=Yigo (Yigu) |url=https://www.guampedia.com/yigo/ |website=Guampedia |access-date=March 18, 2021 |date=January 10, 2021 |archive-date=April 14, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210414145558/https://www.guampedia.com/yigo/ |url-status=live }}</ref>