Mariana Archipelago Expeditions Granted Names: Mattingan and Metaw

The Mariana Archipelago, a chain of islands in the western Pacific Ocean, is home to two of the region’s oldest and most resilient cultures: the Chamorro and Carolinian communities. For centuries, these two groups have lived on the islands, maintaining strong cultural ties to the land, sea, and each other.

The upcoming deep-sea expeditions in the waters of the Marianas have been given the names Mattingan and Metaw. Both words in the Chamorro and Refaluwasch (Carolinian) languages describe the deepest parts of the ocean or the open ocean. The names were selected by the Mariana Trench Marine National Monument in consultation with cultural experts John Castro from the CNMI Department of Community and Cultural Affairs-Traditional Seafaring Program and Kodep Ogumoro Uludong from the Refaluwasch Advisory Council, with support from the Chamorro-Carolinian Language Policy Commission. 

Learn the pronunciation of Mattingan, spoken by Dr. Sean Macduff.

Learn the pronunciation of Metaw, spoken by Kodep Ogumoro Uludong.

Language is one of the strongest ways both Chamorro and Carolinian communities maintain their connection to the Mariana Archipelago. The languages are living records of history, culture, and identity. Through language, both communities share stories of resilience, honor their ancestors, and teach younger generations about their heritage. These expedition names aim to encourage connection with deep ocean exploration and honor the long-standing relationships with the ocean of these masterful ocean voyaging cultures.

In May and June 2025, OET will conduct two expeditions — Mattingan: Mariana Arc Volcanic Exploration and Metaw: Exploring Mud Volcanoes and the Mariana Trench — aboard E/V Nautilus to explore deep-sea habitats around the Mariana Archipelago in collaboration with the Mariana Trench Marine National Monument and other partners. Both expeditions will survey a wide variety of deep-sea habitats prioritized by the local management and science community, including underwater volcanoes, seafloor hot spring hydrothermal vents, mud volcanoes, and Earth’s deepest oceanic trench, where old seafloor is subducted and recycled. Exploration will occur within and outside of MTMNM, within the ocean historically and contemporarily stewarded by the Chamorro and Carolinian people. The expeditions are supported by NOAA Ocean Exploration, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, and the US Geological Survey via the Ocean Exploration Cooperative Institute.

Expedition naming is part of a collaborative effort to appropriately reflect local culture and values across the expeditions. The expedition plans have been developed with input from resource managers, scientists, educators, cultural practitioners, and other ocean stakeholders of the Mariana Islands, including through a March workshop convening government and community representatives in Saipan.