By Tracy Strelser
Here's a little music-history lesson to honor Thanksgiving day. Do you know where the word "drumstick" came from? The modern word drumstick, as in turkey drumstick, was named in the 16th century because it resembled what people in the 1500's knew to be percussion drumsticks. Back then, they saw first-hand, or through drawings and paintings (see photo above), that ancient drumsticks (1400's) didn't look like two straight sticks the way they look today. Back then, they looked more like mallets. In fact, indigenous people played a percussion instrument called the Teponaztli. They used two sticks, called Olmaitl (rubber hands) to beat on the Teponaztli. The shape of Olmaitl bear a striking resemblance to the dark meat on fowl, known today as drumsticks. Hence, someone (most likely a musician) put two-and-two together and started calling the leg of the turkey (or chicken) a "drumstick" and the name stuck.
Happy Thanksgiving from the McLean Highlander Band.
