The Portuguese cavaquinho is a cordophone with origin in the Minho, that later spread by several regions of Portugal and by several countries, where it underwent some changes.
It is a small instrument, usually has 12 frets and the scale is aligned with the body top. The machine head can be "standard" or fan-shaped. There are also 8-string cavaquinhos (4 doubles) that are known as tuna cavaquinhos, because they are used by academic tunas.
The Portuguese musician Júlio Pereira at the end of the 20th century has been a great promoter of the cavaquinho, being largely responsible for the recovery of interest in the instrument in Portugal.
There are many tunings for the cavaquinho, the most usual being E-C#-A-A