Sitar - Etymology and History

Etymology and History

In his Bharatiya Sangeet Vadya Dr. Lalmani Misra traces its development from the Tritantri veena through the nibaddh and anibaddh Tamburas (so named after Rishi Tumbru), also called tanbur and later the jantra. Construction of the similar tanpura was described by Tansen. During the time of Moghul rule Persian lutes were played at court and may have provided a basis of the sitar. However, there is no physical evidence for the sitar until the time of the collapse of the Mughal Empire.

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