The history of the Ukulele

The ukulele is a small guitar-like instrument, which was originated in the 19th century as a Hawaiian adaptation of the Portuguese machete instrument, introduced to Hawaii by Portuguese immigrants, many from Madeira and the Azores. It gained great popularity elsewhere in the United States during the early 20th century, and from there spread internationally.

According to Queen Liliʻuokalani, the last Hawaiian monarch, the name means "the gift that came here", from the Hawaiian words uku (gift or reward) and lele (to come).

Developed in the 1880s, the ukulele is based on several small guitar-like instruments of Portuguese origin, the machete, introduced to the Hawaiian Islands by Portuguese immigrants from Madeira and Cape Verde.

United States mainland

Pre–World War II

The ukulele also made inroads into early country music or old-time music parallel to the then popular mandolin. 

Post–World War II 

From the late 1940s to the late 1960s, plastics manufacturer Mario Maccaferri turned out about 9 million inexpensive ukuleles. The ukulele continued to be popular, appearing on many jazz songs throughout the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. 

Post-1990 revival

After the 1960s, the ukulele declined in popularity until the late 1990s, when interest in the instrument reappeared. During the 1990s, new manufacturers began producing ukuleles and a new generation of musicians took up the instrument. 

The creation of YouTube was a large influence on the popularity of the ukulele. The ready availability of thousands of instructional videos has greatly expanded the popularity of this instrument, and it is now commonly heard in pop music and even TV commercials.

Source:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukulele, https://www.flickr.com/photos/gyom80/2668435335