Guam, an island south of Japan, is a territory of the United States (U.S.).
Guam is in Micronesia, in the western Pacific Ocean, and is the largest and southernmost island in the Mariana Islands chain. Its location makes it one of the closest U.S. jurisdictions to East Asia, although it is thousands of miles from the continental United States.
The United States acquired Guam from Spain in 1898 after the Spanish-American War. Japan occupied the island from 1941 until American forces recaptured it in 1944 during World War II. The Guam Organic Act of 1950 established Guam as an organized, unincorporated U.S. territory and granted U.S. citizenship to its residents.
Guam is not a U.S. state, and its residents cannot vote in the general election for president. Its capital is Hagåtña, while Dededo is the island’s most populous village. Guam also has major U.S. military installations and uses the U.S. dollar.