The word "Tanbur" describes several long-necked string instruments that come from Mesopotamia, Southern or Central Asia. According to the New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, "the names of these instruments are confusing. Today, the term 'tanbur' (or 'tambur') is used for many different but related long-necked lutes found in traditional music and folk songs. These same or similar instruments are also called by other names." These instruments are played in the traditional music of Iran, Iraq, India, Armenia, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan (especially the Avar community), Pakistan, Turkey, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan.

Origins

Tanburs have been used in Mesopotamia since the Akkadian era, which was around 3000 BC.

Archaeologists found three figurines in Susa from about 1500 BC. One of them holds an instrument similar to a tanbur. A rock carving near Mosul, dated to about 1000 BC, shows people playing tanburs.

Playing the tanbur was common by the late Parthian era and during the Sassanid period. The word "tanbur" appears in texts written in Middle Persian and Parthian languages, such as Drakht-i Asurig, Bundahishn, Kar-Namag i Ardashir i Pabagan, and Khosrow and Ridag.

In the 10th century AD, Al-Farabi described two types of tanburs in Persia: the Baghdad tunbūr, found south and west of Baghdad, and the Khorasan tunbūr. This distinction may explain how modern Arabic instruments, based on the Baghdad tunbūr, differ from those in northern Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sindh, and Turkey, which are based on the Khorasan tunbūr.

The name "tanbur" spread widely and was applied to long-necked string instruments in Central Asian music, such as the Dombura and the Turkish tambur, as well as the Kurdish tanbur. Until the early 20th century, instruments in northern Iraq were called chambar and jumbush. In India, the name referred to the tanpura, a fretless drone lute.

The tanbur traveled through Al-Hirah to the Arabian Peninsula and later reached European countries during the early Islamic period. In Al-Hirah, it was called "tunbur" or "tunbureh/tunbura." In Greece, it was named tambouras. It later became tampura in Albania, domra in Russia, dombra in Siberia and Mongolia, and pandura/bandura in the Byzantine Empire. From the Byzantine Empire, it spread to other European countries and was called pandura, mandura, and bandura.

Later, the Iranian (Kurdish) tanbur became linked to the music of the Ahl-e Haqq, a primarily Kurdish religious group similar to a Sufi order. This connection exists in Kurdish areas and in the Lorestān and Sistan va Baluchestan provinces of Iran, where it is called the "tembûr."

Types

The Kermanshah tanbur, also called Kurdish tanbur, tembûr, tanboor, or tanbour, is now played throughout Iran and is often simply called "tanbur" in the country. This instrument is mainly made in Kermanshah Province, Kurdistan Province, and Lorestan. Kermanshah tanburs are the most well-known and are especially crafted in the Goran Region and Sahneh of Kermanshah. Today, the tanbur is used in Ahl-e Haqq (Yarsani) religious ceremonies, and people in this tradition treat tembûrs as sacred objects.

There is also a Taleshi tanbur in the northern region of Talesh and a Tanburak (Tanburg) in Balochistan in southeastern Iran. However, the Kermanshah tanbur is the most famous tanbur in Iran.

The Kurdish tanbur has a narrow, pear-shaped body made from 7 to 10 separate ribs glued together. Its soundboard is usually made of mulberry wood, with decorative holes burned into it. The long neck is separate and has three metal strings, with the first set being double. The melody is played on the double strings using a special technique with three fingers of the right hand. This instrument is closely linked to Kurdish Sufi music in western Iran.

The instrument is 80 cm tall and 16 cm wide. Its resonator has a pear shape and is made from one piece or multiple parts of mulberry wood. The neck is made of walnut and has 14 frets arranged in a semi-tempered chromatic scale. It has two steel strings tuned in fifths, fourths, or seconds, with the higher string sometimes being double.

The Afghan tanbur (or tambur) is mainly played in northern Afghanistan, in cities like Mazar Sharif and Kabul. In the past, it had a wide, hollow neck and a gourd-like body, but now it resembles the Herati dutar more closely. Its body is rounder, and the neck is hollow. It is similar to the Tajik setor. The body is made from a single piece of mulberry wood, and the neck is separate and often decorated. It has three sets of metal strings (single or double) and is played with a wire finger plectrum. It is used to accompany singing and dancing or, less often, classical ghazals. The Afghan tanbur also has sympathetic strings.

The Tajik/Uzbek tanbur has four metal strings that run over a small bridge to a piece of wood at the edge of the body. It is always played with a wire plectrum on the index finger. Its body is carved from hollowed mulberry wood, and the front is made of mulberry. The neck is often decorated with inlaid bone or white plastic. It can also be played with a bow.

The Uyghur tembor is played in Xinjiang. Its neck is very long (about 5 feet) and has five friction pegs. It has five metal strings, which form three courses, with the first and third courses being double.

The Turkish tambur has a long, thin neck and a body made of 20 to 25 thin wooden ribs in a round shape. It has six metal strings, arranged in three pairs.

The yaylı tambur is also played in Turkey. It is based on the older plucked tambur and has a long, fretted neck and a round soundbox made of metal or wood. The front of the soundbox is often covered with a skin or acrylic head, similar to a banjo.

Kazakhstan's national instrument, the dombra (or dombyra, dombira, dombora), looks similar to the dutar but is made of staves and has a flat peghead instead of a neck extension.

The Afghan dambura is mainly played in northern Afghanistan. There are two types: the Turkestani dambura and the Badakhshan dambura.

The Punjabi tanburag is a long-necked lute with a large bowl and has three metal strings. It is also called tanburag, dhambura, damburo, or kamach(i).

The Indian tanpura (tanpura, tamboura, taanpura, or tanipurani) is found in many forms and places, including as an electronic instrument.

The Shirvan tanbur has a pear-shaped body and belongs to the same family as the saz. It is 940 mm long, with a body length of 385 mm, a width of 200 mm, and a height of 135 mm. The neck is 340 mm long, and the head is 120 mm long. It can play notes from the "do" of the first octave to the "mi" of the second octave.

The Pamiri tanbur is considered a solemn instrument. Its sound is deeper, and its tuning is more complex than that of the rubab. It is 80–85 cm long and carved from mulberry or apricot wood. Its soundboard is made of goat or sheep skin, and the fingerboard has a hollow to create a louder sound. Its top is shaped like a half-moon. It has seven nylon strings and an eighth string that duplicates the highest note.

Similar instruments include the Tambura, Tamburica, and the Ukrainian bandura. The Greek tambouras is a long-necked, fretted lute similar to the Turkish saz and the Persian tanbur.

The fretted tanbur also influenced the design of other instruments, such as:

• The baglama (saz), found in the Caucasus, Iran, Turkey,