The tanbūra or " Kissar" is a

bowl lyre A bowl is a typically round dish or container generally used for preparing, serving, or consuming food. The interior of a bowl is characteristically shaped like a spherical cap, with the edges and the bottom forming a seamless curve. This makes ...

of East Africa and the Middle East. It takes its name from the Persian ''

tanbur The term ''Tanbur'' ( fa, تنبور, ) can refer to various long-necked string instruments originating in Mesopotamia, Southern or Central Asia. According to the '' New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'', "terminology presents a comp ...

'' via the

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walte ...

''tunbur'' (), though this term refers to long-necked lutes. The instrument probably originated in

Upper Egypt Upper Egypt ( ar, صعيد مصر ', shortened to , , locally: ; ) is the southern portion of Egypt and is composed of the lands on both sides of the Nile that extend wikt:downriver, upriver from Lower Egypt in the north to Nubia in the south. ...

and the Sudan in

Nubia Nubia () (Nobiin language, Nobiin: Nobīn, ) is a region along the Nile river encompassing the area between the Cataracts of the Nile, first cataract of the Nile (just south of Aswan in southern Egypt) and the confluence of the Blue Nile, Blue ...

and is used in the ''

Fann At-Tanbura Fann aṭ-Ṭanbūra ( ar, فن الطنبورة) is a traditional music and dance genre in the Arab states of the Persian Gulf, especially Bahrain, Kuwait and Oman. Musically, the '' tanbūra'' instrument plays a central role, along with several ...

'' in the Persian Gulf Arab States. It also plays an important role in ''

zār In the cultures of the Horn of Africa and adjacent regions of the Middle East, ''Zār'' ( ar, زار, gez, ዛር) is the term for a demon or spirit assumed to possess individuals, mostly women, and to cause discomfort or illness. The so-ca ...

'' rituals. According to ethnomusicologist

Christian Poché Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ (title), Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive ...

, it has been played in "Egypt, Sudan, Djibouti, North Yemen, Southern Iraq and the Gulf States."

References

External links

* https://web.archive.org/web/20080524061339/http://www.octm-folk.gov.om/meng/instrument_mel02.asp
The TamburaSudanese lyre audio samples
Lyres Arabic musical instruments Bahraini musical instruments Kuwaiti musical instruments Omani musical instruments Qatari musical instruments Somalian musical instruments Djiboutian musical instruments Emirati musical instruments Sudanese musical instruments Sacred musical instruments {{lyre-stub

See also

References

External links