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The history of the maracas is best traced through the artwork of pre-Columbian Indians, especially the tribes in Colombia, Venezuela, Brazil, and Paraguay. The word maraca is believed to have been given to the instrument by the Araucanian people of central Chile. It is used for all gourd rattles although some also have more specific names. In the region of West Africa along the Atlantic Ocean called Guinea, native people tell the legend of a goddess making a maraca by sealing white pebbles in a calabash, a hard gourd that is also shaped into cooking utensils. Natives of the Congo in Africa and the Hopi Indians in America share the tradition of using turtle shells and baskets for rattles; when settlers brought European goods to America, native Americans collected empty shell cartridges, metal spice boxes, and cans to make rattles. (How Products are Made)

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8y ago

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