Ukulele Research Paper

642 Words3 Pages
History Of The Ukulele The name 'ukulele' is the traditional Hawaiian name that was given to a small instrument called the machete (machete de braga), which was originally developed in the Madeira Islands of Portugal. The machete itself is a descendent of the early European and Middle Eastern plucked stringed instruments (such as the lute), is a member of the guitar family, and goes by several different names including the cavaquinho, braguinha, manchhete and cavaco. The machete was brought into Hawaii by Portuguese immigrants, who moved to the islands to work in the sugar cane fields in the late 1800's. Manuel Nunes, Augusto Dias and Jose do Espirito Santo, who arrived in Hawaii on the Ravenscrag in 1879 from the Portuguese Islands of Madeira…show more content…
One story of how the ukulele got its name states that when one of the passengers on the Ravenscrag, Joao Fernandes, reached the Honolulu port, he was so overjoyed after four months at sea that he immediately jumped off the ship and began playing folk songs from Madeira on the wharf. The Hawaiians who saw Fernandes play the instrument thought that his fast-moving fingers looked like fleas jumping over the fingerboard - and so the name for the instrument was born. Another account of how the ukulele got its name is based on the understanding that the Englishman Edward Purvis played the instrument. Edward Purvis acted as an Assistant Chamberlain to King David Kalakaua, the last reigning King of Hawaii, and a man who was very influential in the early life of the ukulele. Purvis was thought to have been nicknamed 'ukulele' due to his small stature and his energetic personality. Eventually, it is thought that the instrument that he played for the King also adopted this name. The last Hawaiian monarch, Queen Lili'uokalani, has been recorded as explaining that the term 'ukulele' in fact means 'the gift that came here' (with 'uku' translating to 'gift or reward' and 'lele' translating to 'to come') which indeed is a much different perspective, and one that has nothing at all to do with…show more content…
The Exposition featured performances by Hawaiian ukulele players, performing as both soloists and in groups, who were very popular with the fair visitors. After the ukulele began to acquire fans in mainland America, the ukulele was then adopted by local mainland musicians, who used it to play traditional Hawaiian music additionally introduced the ukulele into other genres. The popularity of the ukulele boomed through 1915-1920, with Hawaiian music becoming as popular as current mainland music. Mainland American instrument manufacturers saw an opportunity in making ukuleles, and manufacturers in New York and other major American cities began producing and marketing the instrument; causing some tension between the Hawaiian-based and the larger mainland American manufacturers. Despite this tension the popularity of the ukulele kept growing in America well into the 1920's, and ukulele sales in general continued to
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  • Ukulele Research Paper

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    The ukulele has been an icon in Hawaiian music for over 120 years, but it did not originate from there. The original ukulele was a combination of different instruments from the Iberian Peninsula of Europe. It was brought to Hawaii along with the plantation workers in the 1880s. 1 The name ukulele is the traditional Hawaiian name that was given to a smaller instrument called the machete (machete de braga).5 The machete is a descendent of the early European and Middle Eastern plucked stringed instruments

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