Sitar
The sitar in five languages: Italian, German and French borrow the Hindi name for this long-necked lute
Related
Five languages
| Language | Name |
|---|---|
| Chinese | 西塔琴（锡塔尔琴） |
| English | sitar |
| Italian | sitar |
| German | Sitar |
| French | sitar |
The sitar is the long-necked plucked instrument of North Indian classical music: usually six or seven played strings plus a set of metal sympathetic strings, movable frets, a plectrum (mizrab) in the right hand and deep bends in the left. Italian, German and French have no separate coinage and simply borrow sitar (German Sitar).
Watch out: the sitar is not an "Indian guitar", nor is it the Persian setar — the setar has fewer strings and no sympathetic set, and only the names are related (the usual account). The sympathetic strings ring passively with the played strings, and that drone is central to the sitar's sound.
Read deeper → The sitar
Sources
- 各语种名称与形制，参 The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, "Sitar"；译名参通行音乐术语词典；本文为原创表述
Used for fact-checking only; all prose is original.