Neither the strange noise you're hearing during today's World Cup games (and for the rest of the tournament, presumably) is the sound of thousands of vuvuzelas. But what, pray tell, is a vuvuzela?
A vuvuzela is a long plastic horn popular with South African soccer fans, who blow them en masse during games. Played by producing a raspberry sound with your lips, the vuvuzela's sound has been compared to an elephants trumpet, a dying goat and (in the TIME office) a car going over rumble strips.
The horns first came into fashion in the mid-1990s, but their origin is unclear. Some say the vuvuzela is a descendant of the traditional kudu horn though that seems apocryphal. One distributor claims the instrument came over as a children's toy from America. The trumpets even have their own Philo T. Farsnworth: Freddie Makke, a legendary supporter of South African pro club Kaizer Chiefs, who claims he invented an aluminum version in the late 60s, then switched over to plastic after the originals were confused with weapons.
FIFA originally considered banning the vuvuzela's in the run-up to the World Cup, after scientists warned of hearing damage among the spectators and both players and announcers expressed fears they would drowned out by the trumpets drone. South African officials eventually convinced FIFA to drop the proposed ban, arguing that they were an essential part of the South African soccer experience. (Vuvuzelas longer than 1 meter remain off-limits.)
For more information contact All About Jazz.
