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cittern
cittern , stringed musical instrument of the guitar family having an oval body, a flat back, and a fretted neck. Its strings, made of wire and varying in number, were plucked. It was first made in the Middle Ages and at that time was usually called citole or sitole. The name cittern was given it in the 16th cent. in England, where, as in all western Europe, it was very popular until the early part of the 18th cent. It has also been called cister, cistre, cithern, cithren, citharen, cetera, cither, cithara, gittern, and sittron. |
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Cite this article
"cittern." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "cittern." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-cittern.html "cittern." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-cittern.html |
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cittern
cittern. Renaissance instr. something between a lyre and a guitar, but with metal str., a flat back, and pear-shaped body. Played with a quill plectrum. Name derived from Gr. kithara (lyre), and the cittern was known as cistra (Fr.), Cister (Ger.), and cithren (Eng.). In It. where it was developed it was called the cetra. Used as a solo instr. and in broken consort. Not to be confused with gittern. From late 17th cent. gave way to guitar but survived into early 20th cent. as folk instr. in Switz. and Ger.
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Cite this article
MICHAEL KENNEDY and JOYCE BOURNE. "cittern." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. MICHAEL KENNEDY and JOYCE BOURNE. "cittern." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O76-cittern.html MICHAEL KENNEDY and JOYCE BOURNE. "cittern." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music. 1996. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O76-cittern.html |
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cithern
cithern, cittern instrument of the guitar kind. XVI. — L. cithara (see above), crossed with GITTERN.
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Cite this article
T. F. HOAD. "cithern." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "cithern." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-cithern.html T. F. HOAD. "cithern." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-cithern.html |
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cithern
cithern see cittern . |
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Cite this article
"cithern." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "cithern." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-X-cithern.html "cithern." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-X-cithern.html |
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cittern
cittern
•adjourn, astern, Berne, burn, churn, concern, discern, earn, fern, fohn, kern, learn, Lucerne, quern, Sauternes, spurn, stern, Sterne, tern, terne, Traherne, turn, urn, Verne, yearn
•Bayern • Blackburn • heartburn
•Hepburn • Raeburn • Swinburne
•Gisborne, Lisburn
•sideburn • sunburn • Bannockburn
•lady-fern • Vättern • extern
•cittern, gittern
•Comintern • taciturn
•nocturn, nocturne
•U-turn • upturn
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Cite this article
"cittern." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "cittern." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-cittern.html "cittern." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-cittern.html |
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