Mysteries of vernacular: Ukulele - Jessica Oreck and Rachael Teel

Mysteries of vernacular: Ukulele, a small, four-stringed guitar. Oddly enough, the word ukulele, in its native Hawaiian, literally translates to jumping flea. Even more surprising, the instrument itself did not originate in Hawaii.

So, how did a Hawaiian word come to describe a non-Hawaiian instrument? Back in the late 1800s, King Kalākaua was the last reigning king of the kingdom of Hawaii. He was nicknamed "The Merry Monarch" because of his joy for life and, in particular, his love of music. In the King's court, there was a former British army officer named Edward Purvis.

Though a small man, he was quite lively, and his nickname was "Jumping Flea," "Ukulele" in Hawaiian. Like the King, he was a great lover of music. In 1879, a group of Portuguese immigrants arrived on the islands of Hawaii, bringing with them a small, four-stringed guitar known as a braguinha.

Purvis was immediately taken with the instrument and helped spread its popularity throughout the King's court. As the story goes, it was not long before his nickname, Ukulele, jumped from the man to his favorite instrument. As demand grew, several Portuguese families began to manufacture the minuscule guitar on the islands, making small modifications until it became the same ukulele we recognize today.