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The '''banjo''' is stringed musical instrument, usually played in [[folk]] music or [[bluegrass]] music. The instrument features a long [[fret]]ted neck and a body that looks like a drum, with a (usually artificial) skin stretched over a circular frame. While strongly identified with [[American]] musical traditions, the banjo's origins are found in [[Africa]].

The '''banjo''' is stringed musical instrument, usually played in [[folk]] music or [[bluegrass]] music. The instrument features a long [[fret]]ted neck and a body that looks like a drum, with a (usually artificial) skin stretched over a circular frame. While strongly identified with [[American]] musical traditions, the ancestor of the modern-day banjo is believed to come from West [[Africa]], brought by slaves in the late 17th century to [[Jamaica]] and the southern American colonies. It reached its present form in the second half of the 19th century, when it began to be commercially sold throughout the United States.<ref>Jay Scott Odell and Robert B. Winans. "Banjo." In ''New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' and ''Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online'', http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/subscriber/article/grove/music/01958 (accessed January 12, 2010).</ref>

Most banjos have 5 strings (though the shorter tenor banjo has only four), one of which is shorter, and is played as a drone in the background.

Most banjos have 5 strings (though the shorter tenor banjo has only four), one of which is shorter, and is played as a drone in the background.