Home › Glossary › Letter C

Charango

Musical Instrument
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

A small Andean stringed instrument traditionally made from an armadillo shell

Detailed Definition
The charango’s bright, poignant sound embodies Andean identity, resistance, and mestizo culture in poetry; its humble origins and lyrical versatility make it a powerful symbol of survival, memory, and indigenous voice in Latin American verse.
Example
Example in poetry:
In Andean poetry, the charango’s armadillo shell body sings of earth and resilience; Poets liken its ten strings to “fingers of the mountain plucking sky”; The charango appears in protest verse as the voice of indigenous resistance; Its bright, rapid strum becomes a metaphor for urgency in storytelling; In diaspora poetry, the charango carries the altiplano in its wooden curves; Modern poets use the charango to explore adaptation—tradition reshaped by necessity.
Additional Notes
The charango, an Andean lute made traditionally from armadillo shell, blends indigenous and Spanish influences; its bright, rapid sound carries joy and resilience—ideal for poems about cultural hybridity, mountain landscapes, or music as resistance.
Also Known As
Charango guitar
Skip to main content