It is not clear whether the charango is a direct descendant of a particular Spanish stringed instrument; it may have evolved from the vihuela, bandurria (mandolin), or the lute.

Another story says that the Spaniards prohibited natives from practicing their ancestral music, and that the charango was a successful attempt to make a lute that could be easily hidden under a garment such as a poncho.

[6] There is no clear evidence that points to a specific location or moment in time for the birth of the charango but there are a number of theories being debated.

One of those is that it is believed the charango came into its present form in the early 18th century in the city of Potosí in the Royal Audiencia of Charcas part of the Viceroyalty of Peru (in what is present-day Bolivia), probably from Amerindian contact with Spanish settlers.

Cavour presents evidence from Bolivian murals and sculptures as early as 1744, in, for example, the Church of San Lorenzo of the city of Potos (Potosí), the facade of which depicts two mermaids playing what he believes to be charangos.

[5] Another two theories that are being researched are that the Charango originally came to Potosí from the Ayacucho region in colonial Peru as a result of migration within the Quechua populations.

[8] Turino mentions that he found carved sirens representing playing charangos in some Colonial churches in the highlands of Bolivia.

[9] One of the churches to which Turino refers may well be that mentioned by Cavour; construction on the San Lorenzo edifice began in 1547 and wasn't completed until 1744.

[5] According to Eduardo Carrasco of Quilapayún, in the first week after the 1973 Chilean coup d'etat, the military organized a meeting with folk musicians where it was explained that the traditional instruments charango and quena were now banned.

One source suggests that the instrument took its name from its players, who were called charangeros, meaning "someone of questionable character and low morals".

Unlike most wooden lutes, the body and neck are typically made of a single block of wood, carved into shape.

The charango's ten strings require quite a large headstock, often approaching or even exceeding the size of its diminutive sound box.

Old instruments had friction-style tuning pegs (similar to those used on violins), but today a classical guitar style peghead with geared "machine" tuners is the norm, though these are occasionally positioned perpendicular to the headstock.

Another variant is a neck with two holes bored 3/4 of the way through, parallel to the fretboard and close to the headstock (an innovation said to color the instrument's tone).

The ramifications of the charango tuning are that there is a very narrow tonal range in most chords, often with many pitch duplications, which produces a surprisingly powerful sound from the small instrument.

In terms of melody playing, the charanguista can create a harp-like sound with close intervals ringing out (i.e., like a piano with the sustain pedal engaged).