A handpan is a general name for a group of musical instruments that belong to a type of steelpan. After the Hang was introduced in 2000, many makers and brands of handpans began to appear around the world.

The basic design of a handpan includes two metal halves joined together. One side has a central tone field surrounded by a circle with seven or more tone fields. The other side has an opening. Differences among makers include the materials used, how the instruments are shaped, how the tone fields are formed, and the methods used to tune the instrument.

History

The term "handpan" was first used in 2007 on the website of an American steelpan maker called Pantheon Steel. They used it to describe a new instrument they created as an alternative to the Hang, which had a name protected by a patent from PANArt Hangbau AG. Later, the term was discussed on an online forum about Hang music. This forum was no longer active, and in 2009, a new forum called handpan.org was started. After that, "handpan" became a common name for similar instruments.

There are many handpan makers around the world. Their instruments differ in materials, how they are made, shape, sound, and quality.