Rajao

The Madeiran rajão is one of several ancestral instruments to the ukulele. While the machete gave the ukulele its form and scale, it was the rajão that contributed the re-entrant (or my dog has fleas) tuning. The machete is tuned to Open G while the five-stringed rajão is tuned DGCEA. Lose the fifth (D) string and you've got the C uke tuning.

This folk instrument from the Portuguese island of Madeira typically had five strings, but this example has only four. Da　Costa’s unusual rajão is built in the shape of a fish. The instrument was popular with Portuguese sailors, who took it around the world. They introduced the rajão to native Hawaiians, and it inspired the creation of the ukulele.

The rajão is a chordophone used primarily as accompanist of folklore singers and dancers of Madeira island, from where it has its origin. It has 5 strings and tune A-E-C-G-D, from the 1st to the 5th string, but being the 3rd the lowest. The rajão model 11180 from Artimúsica has a top in solid linden.