The ukulele was introduced to Hawaii by Madeiran immigrants near the close of the 19th century. The Portuguese brought a small guitar-like instrument, known as the machete. The instrument became a very popular one in Hawaiian culture, and a majority of Hawaiian songs involve the ukulele. In Hawaiian, ukulele literally means "flea (uku) jumping (lele)." It was named as such because when plucked, the high pitch of the strings brings to mind the image of a jumping flea. There are currently four sizes of ukulele; soprano, concert, tenor and baritone.