The ukulele (/juːkəˈleɪliː/ew-kə-LAY-lee, from Hawaiian:ʻukulele[ˈʔukuˈlɛlɛ] (oo-koo-leh-leh); variant: ukelele) sometimes abbreviated to uke, is a member of the lute family of instruments; it generally employs four nylon or gut strings or four courses of strings.