5 January 2019
marimba
[muh-rim-buh]
noun
1. a musical instrument, originating in Africa but popularized and modified in Central America, consisting of a set of graduated wooden bars, often with resonators beneath to reinforce the sound, struck with mallets.
Origin of marimba
Portuguese Kimbundu
1695-1705; Portuguese; Kimbundu or a related Bantu language; akin to kalimba
Dictionary.com
Examples from the Web for marimba
Contemporary Examples
You’ll hear a marimba and dulcimer every so often in this crescendoing collection of stellar four-part harmonies.
10 Great Bands You’ve Never Heard
Winston Ross
May 26, 2013
Historical Examples
One of their chief instruments is the ‘ marimba ‘ or ‘Tyanbilo,’ a form of harmonium.
Chatterbox, 1906
Various
The marimba is played with drum-sticks of rubber, and the tone is good and powerful.
Chatterbox, 1906
Various
This form of marimba is also met with amongst the natives of Costa Rica.
Chatterbox, 1906
Various
The Portuguese have imitated the marimba, and use it in their dances in Angola.
Great African Travellers
W.H.G. Kingston
Others assert that the Indians have known the marimba time out of mind, and undoubtedly invented it.
The Gegence; A Comedy Ballet in the Nahuatl-Spanish Dialect of Nicaragua
Daniel G. Brinton
The Smithsonian Institution contains a good specimen of the marimba.
The Gegence; A Comedy Ballet in the Nahuatl-Spanish Dialect of Nicaragua
Daniel G. Brinton
Today’s quote
Infuse your life with action. Don’t wait for it to happen. Make it happen. Make your own future. Make your own hope. Make your own love. And whatever your beliefs, honor your creator, not by passively waiting for grace to come down from upon high, but by doing what you can to make grace happen… yourself, right now, right down here on Earth.
– Bradley Whitford
On this day
5 January – the twelfth day of the 12 days of Christmas (Western Christianity).
5 January 1914 – Henry Ford introduces the $5 per day wage, which was double the rate previously offered. Ford believed it would help him keep his best people and that it would enable his workers to buy Ford cars.
5 January 1932 – birth of Umberto Eco. Italian writer, philosopher and semiotician. Author of novels, including ‘The Name of the Rose’, ‘Foucalt’s Pendulum’, ‘The Island of the Day Before’, ‘The Prague Cemetery’. Died 19 February 2016.
5 January 1933 – work commences on San Francisco’s Golden Gate bridge. It was completed on 19 April 1937. The bridge is 2.7km long and 227.4m high.
5 January 1945 – First use of kamikaze pilots. Battle of Lingayan Gulf, Philippines. Allied forces attack Japanese positions. Japan had a seriously weakened air force that was now mainly comprised of inexperienced pilots, so authorised the first use of kamikaze (divine wind) attacks. USA ships included the USS Mississippi, New Mexico and Colorado. Australian ships included the HMAS Australia, Shropshire, Arunta, Warramunga, Gascoyne and Warrego. The Allies lost 30 ships, with 67 others damaged. Japanese casualties are unknown, however, the battle was a victory for the Allies.
5 January 1968 – the ‘Prague Spring’ in Czechoslovakia occurred through the political and economic reforms of leader Alexander Dubcek aimed at introducing ‘socialism with a human face’. The reforms included freedom of speech and allowing non-communist political organisations. The Soviet Union were less enthusiastic about these reforms and invaded Czechoslovakia with 600,000 troops.