How to pronounce ukulele

The word ‘ukulele is Hawai’ian, not English. In Hawai’ian, the language of origin, it is pronounced “oo koo lay lay”. Most English speakers say “yoo koo lay lee” or “yoo ka lay lee”. The Hawai’ian pronunciation is unquestionably the most “correct” pronunciation, as that is the way it was first pronounced.

It’s a glottal stop that is notated as a sort-of apostrophe with the orientation of a little “6.” The ‘okina is pronounced like the vocal break in “uh-oh!” Because the ‘okina in ukulele is at the beginning of the word, there’s nothing to glottal stop “against” when pronouncing the word on its own.

Yup. If you pronounce it as if it began with the consonant “y” then it would be “a ukulele“. If you pronounce it the Hawaiian way (beginning with the “oo” sound) then it would be “an ‘ukulele“. The apostrophe in ‘ukulele is part of the Hawaiian spelling.

Purvis, a lively and petite fellow, gained the Hawaiian nickname ukulele, which translates to “jumping flea” in English. Aside from these stories, one historical account comes directly from the true meaning of the Hawaiian words uku and lele. Uku means gift or reward, and lele means to come.

ukulelist (plural ukulelists) Someone who plays the ukulele.