Mysteries of vernacular: Ukulele - Jessica Oreck and Rachael Teel

字源探秘：烏克麗麗 (Ukulele) - Jessica Oreck 與 Rachael Teel

譯者: Geoff Chen 審譯者: Marssi Draw

Mysteries of vernacular:

字源探秘：

Ukulele,

Ukulele（烏克麗麗）

a small, four-stringed guitar.

一把小的四弦吉他

Oddly enough, the word ukulele,

奇怪的是，Ukulele 這個字

in its native Hawaiian,

在夏威夷語中

literally translates to jumping flea.

直譯為「跳動的跳蚤」

Even more surprising,

更令人驚訝的是

the instrument itself did not originate in Hawaii.

這種樂器本身並不源於夏威夷

So, how did a Hawaiian word

那麼，一個夏威夷詞彙

come to describe a non-Hawaiian instrument?

是如何被用來描述 一個非夏威夷的樂器呢？

Back in the late 1800s,

在 19 世紀晚期

King Kalākaua was the last reigning king

國王卡拉卡瓦 (Kalākaua) 是夏威夷王國

of the kingdom of Hawaii.

最後一位被加冕的國王

He was nicknamed "The Merry Monarch"

他的綽號是「快樂國王」

because of his joy for life

這是由於他對生命的喜愛

and, in particular, his love of music.

尤其是他對音樂的熱愛

In the King's court,

在國王的王宮裡

there was a former British army officer

有一名英國軍官

named Edward Purvis.

名為愛德華珀維斯 (Edward Purvis)

Though a small man,

雖然是個身材較矮小的男人

he was quite lively,

他可是非常活潑

and his nickname was "Jumping Flea,"

他的綽號就是「跳動的跳蚤」

"Ukulele" in Hawaiian.

夏威夷語為「烏克麗麗」(Ukulele)

Like the King, he was a great lover of music.

就像國王，他也是音樂的愛好者

In 1879, a group of Portuguese immigrants

在 1879 年，一批葡萄牙移民

arrived on the islands of Hawaii,

抵達夏威夷群島

bringing with them a small, four-stringed guitar

他們帶著一把小的四弦吉他

known as a braguinha.

那把吉他叫 Braguinha

Purvis was immediately taken with the instrument

珀維斯立刻愛上了那樂器

and helped spread its popularity

並且致力使它

throughout the King's court.

在整個國王的王宮裡流行開來

As the story goes,

隨著故事的發展

it was not long before his nickname, Ukulele,

不久後，烏克麗麗從這個男人的綽號

jumped from the man to his favorite instrument.

一躍而成為他最喜歡的樂器名稱

As demand grew, several Portuguese families

隨著需求增長，有幾個葡萄牙家庭

began to manufacture

開始在島上生產

the minuscule guitar on the islands,

小型吉他

making small modifications

他們對其進行微小修改

until it became the same ukulele we recognize today.

然後它便成為 我們今天所認識的烏克麗麗了