Sanxian

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A traditional Chinese musical instrument resembling a lute, typically having three strings and played with a plectrum
2. It is often used in folk music and theatrical performances, providing melodic accompaniment
3. This instrument features a distinctive sound characterized by its rich, resonant tones and is commonly associated with Chinese classical culture

Etymology: The sanxian is a plucked lute with a long fretless neck, a snakeskin-covered body and three strings, and its English name is a straightforward borrowing of the Mandarin 三弦 (sānxián), which combines 三 (sān, "three") with 弦 (xián, "string"). The name therefore simply describes the instrument: three strings. Its doublet is sanshin, the Japanese version of the same name, which reached Japan from China and became the familiar shamisen-family instrument of Okinawa, where it is known as the sanshin. The two words are the same Chinese characters pronounced through different language systems, one arriving in English from Mandarin and the other from Japanese.

Synonyms: three-stringed lute, Chinese lute, traditional lute