The oud (pronounced "OOD") is a Middle Eastern musical instrument with a short neck, pear-shaped body, and no frets. It is a type of lute, classified as a chordophone in the Hornbostel–Sachs system. The oud usually has 11 strings grouped into six courses, but some models have five or seven courses with 10 or 13 strings, respectively.
The oud is similar to other lutes, including Western lutes that developed from the Medieval Islamic oud. Similar instruments, like the barbat from Persia, were used in the Middle East before Islam. Different versions of the oud are found in Arabia, Turkey, and other Middle Eastern and Balkan regions. Unlike Western lutes, the oud has no frets and a smaller neck. It is the direct descendant of the Persian barbat lute. The oldest surviving oud is believed to be in Brussels at the Museum of Musical Instruments.
An early description of the modern oud was written by 11th-century musician and author Al-Hasan Ibn al-Haytham in his book Ḥāwī al-Funūn wa Salwat al-Maḥzūn. The first complete description of the ‛ūd and its construction appears in a 9th-century text by Yaʻqūb ibn Isḥāq al-Kindī, an Arab philosopher. According to Kindī, stringed instruments in Pre-Islamic Persia, Arabia, and Mesopotamia had three strings, a small musical box, and a long neck without tuning pegs. During the Islamic era, these instruments were modified by adding a fourth string and a pegbox for tuning. Early ouds had four courses (one string per course), tuned in successive fourths. By the 9th century, a fifth string called ḥād was sometimes added to extend the range to two octaves. Modern tuning follows the same pattern of fourths, with additional strings that may be tuned differently based on regional or personal preferences.
Historically, oud strings were made from stretched animal gut. Today, strings are made from silk, nylon, copper, or silver wire. The oud is played by plucking the strings with a tool called a risha, which means "feather" in Arabic. Traditionally, risha was made from an eagle’s feather, but it is now commonly made from plastic.
Historical records show that Ziryab (789–857) added a fifth string to his oud. He was famous for founding a music school in Andalusia, a region where the oud entered Europe. Al-Hasan Ibn al-Haytham also mentioned the fifth string in his writings.
Names and etymology
The Arabic word "oud" (also spelled "al-ʿūd") refers to a thin piece of wood shaped like a straw. It can describe the wooden plectrum used to play the oud, the thin strips of wood that form the back of the instrument, or the wooden soundboard that makes the oud different from similar instruments with skin-covered bodies. Henry George Farmer noted a similarity between the word "oud" and the Arabic phrase "al-ʿawda," which means "the return" of happiness.
Many theories explain the origin of the word "oud." In Arabic, "oud" (عود) means "from wood" and "stick." In 1940, Curt Sachs suggested that "oud" might mean "flexible stick" instead of "wood." A scholar named Eckhard Neubauer proposed that "oud" could come from the Persian word "rōd" or "rūd," which means "string." Another expert, Richard J. Dumbrill, an archaeomusicologist, suggested that "rōd" might have come from the Sanskrit word "rudrī," meaning "string instrument," and later entered Arabic through a Semitic language. However, the people who made these claims were not professional linguists.
Another theory, supported by scholars of Semitic languages, states that the Arabic word "ʿoud" comes from the Syriac word "ʿoud-a," meaning "wooden stick" or "burning wood." This word is related to the Biblical Hebrew word "’ūḏ," which refers to a stick used to stir firewood.
The instrument is called by different names in various languages. In Arabic, it is "ʿūd" or "ʿoud" (pronounced [ʕu(ː)d, ʢuːd]; plural: "aʿwād"). In Armenian, it is "ud." In Syriac, it is "Ūd." In Greek, it is "oúti." In Hebrew, it is "ud." In Persian, it is "barbat," though "barbat" is a different type of lute. In Turkish and Azeri, it is "ud" or "ut." In Somali, it is "cuud" or "kaban."
History
The full history of how the lute family developed is not completely known today. However, some parts of this history have been studied. Music expert Curt Sachs divided lutes into two types: long-necked and short-necked. Douglas Alton Smith believes the long-necked type should not be called a lute at all, because it existed for over 1,000 years before the short-necked lute, which later became known as the modern lute, appeared.
Musicologist Richard Dumbrill uses the word "lute" to describe instruments that existed thousands of years before the term was first used. Dumbrill found evidence in Mesopotamia, such as a cylinder seal from around 3100 BC or earlier, which shows a woman playing a stick-shaped lute. Like Sachs, Dumbrill believed the length of the neck helped define lutes, separating them into long-necked and short-necked types. He studied long-necked lutes from Mesopotamia and similar instruments from other ancient cultures, including Greek, Egyptian, Elamite, Hittite, Roman, Bulgar, Turkic, Indian, Chinese, Armenian, Canaanite, and Israelite societies. He named some long lutes, such as the pandura, panduri, tambur, and tanbur.
Short-necked lutes were further developed in areas east of Mesopotamia, like Bactria and Gandhara, into a short, almond-shaped lute. Sachs described Gandharan lutes in art as showing a mix of Indian and Greek styles. These short-necked lutes were considered ancestors of later lute families in Islamic, Sino-Japanese, and European traditions. Sachs noted that Gandharan lutes had a pear-shaped body, a short neck, a stringholder, and four or five strings. The oldest known images of short-necked lutes were Persian figurines from the 8th century BC, found in Suza.
When the Umayyads conquered Spain in 711 AD, they brought their instrument called the oud with them. An oud is shown in a painting from Qasr Amra, part of the Umayyad dynasty, as being played by a musician.
During the 8th and 9th centuries, many musicians and artists from the Islamic world moved to al-Andalus (Muslim Spain). One was Abu l-Hasan ‘Ali Ibn Nafi‘, who added a fifth string to his oud and helped start a music school in Córdoba.
By the 11th century, Muslim Spain became a center for making musical instruments. These instruments spread to Provence, influencing French musicians and eventually reaching the rest of Europe. While Europe developed the lute, the oud remained important in Arab and Ottoman music, changing over time.
Although the short lute became popular in western Europe, it also entered Europe from the east. As early as the 6th century, the Bulgars brought a short-necked instrument called the komuz to the Balkans.
According to Abū Ṭālib al-Mufaḍḍal, the oud was said to have been invented by Lamech, a descendant of Adam and Cain. Another story claims the inventor was Mani. Some myths suggest the oud was created by the Devil or by philosophers, though these are not considered reliable.
One theory says the oud came from the Persian instrument called the barbat, which Marcel-Dubois linked to Central Asia. The earliest picture of the barbat dates to the 1st century BC in northern Bactria. A Gandhara sculpture from the 2nd–4th centuries AD shows a similar instrument, possibly introduced by the Kushan people. The word "barbat" meant "short-necked lute" in Pahlavi, the language of the Sasanian Empire. The instrument spread westward to the Middle East, where it was adopted by the Persians.
The barbat (also called mizhar, kirān, or muwatter) was used by some Arabs in the 6th century. In the late 6th century, a wood-topped version of the Persian instrument was made by al Nadr and called "ūd," later introduced to Mecca. This instrument was played there in the 7th century. In the 7th century, Mansour Zalzal modified or improved it, and both the barbat and "ūd shabbūt" were used together until the 10th century. Some modern scholars have confused these instruments, and examples like those in the Cantigas de Santa Maria and a book by Harold Bowen may actually be barbats.
The oldest picture of a short-necked lute-type vīnā dates to the 1st–3rd centuries AD. The oud likely originated in Central Asia, with the barbat being used in pre-Islamic Persia. Since the Safavid period, the name changed from barbat to oud, and the instrument gradually became less popular among musicians.
The Turkic peoples had a similar instrument called the kopuz, believed to have magical powers. It was used in military bands, as noted in Göktürk monument inscriptions. These military bands were later used by other Turkic states and eventually by Europeans.
Types
Modern-day ouds are divided into three types: Arabian, Turkish, and Persian, which is also called barbat.
This classification is not only based on where the ouds are made. The Arabic oud is used not only in the Arabian Peninsula but also across the Arab world. Turkish ouds are played by Anatolian Greeks, who call them "outi," and in other Mediterranean areas. Iraqi, Egyptian, and Syrian ouds are usually grouped under the term "Arabian oud" because of their similarities, though local differences may exist, especially with the Iraqi oud. However, these categories are recent and do not fully represent the variety of ouds made in the 19th century or today.
Arabian ouds are typically larger than Turkish and Persian ouds, creating a richer and deeper sound. Turkish ouds have a tighter and sharper sound, partly because they are often tuned one whole step higher than Arabian ouds. Turkish ouds are usually lighter in construction, with unfinished soundboards, lower string height, and strings placed closer together. They are also higher pitched and have a "brighter timbre." Arabian ouds have a scale length of 61 to 62 cm, compared to the 58.5 cm scale length of Turkish ouds. There are also electro-acoustic and electric ouds available today.
The modern Persian barbat resembles the oud but has a smaller body, longer neck, slightly raised fingerboard, and a distinct sound.
The cümbüş is a Turkish instrument that combines features of the oud and the banjo.
Different tuning methods exist for the oud in various traditions. In the Arabic tradition, a common older tuning is (from low to high pitch): D2 G2 A2 D3 G3 C4 on single strings or D2, G2 G2, A2 A2, D3 D3, G3 G3, C4 C4 for two-string courses. In the Turkish tradition, the "Bolahenk" tuning is common: (from low to high pitch): C#2 F#2 B2 E3 A3 D4 on single strings or C#2, F#2 F#2, B2 B2, E3 E3, A3 A3, D4 D4 for two-string courses. In the Bolahenk system, the C2 and F2 notes are tuned 1/4 of a tone higher than standard C and F.
Many Arab players use the tuning: C2 F2 A2 D3 G3 C4 on standard tuning instruments. Some use a higher pitch tuning called "Modern Arabic Tuning," which is F2 A2 D3 G3 C4 F4.
The Zenne oud, sometimes called a women's oud or female oud, is a smaller version of the oud designed for people with smaller hands. It usually has a scale length of 55–57 cm, compared to the 60–62 cm of the Arabic oud and the 58.5 cm of the Turkish oud.
The oud arbi is a North African version of the oud with a longer neck and only four string courses. It should not be confused with the differently shaped and tuned kwitra. The oud arbi is tuned in a re-entrant pattern of G3 G3, E4 E4, A3 A3, D4 D4.
The oud kumethra, also known as the pregnant oud or pear oud, has a body shaped like a pear. This type is rare and mostly found in Egypt.