The kemenche (also called kemençe in Turkish and κεμεντζές in Greek) and kamancha (known as کمانچه in Persian and Քամանչա in Armenian) are names for different kinds of stringed instruments played with a bow. These instruments come from the Eastern Mediterranean region, including Greece, Armenia, Iran, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and areas near the Black Sea. They are traditional folk instruments, usually having three strings. Musicians hold them upright, placing the tail of the instrument on their knee while playing. The name "kemenche" comes from the Persian word "kamancheh," which means "small bow."
Variations
The Kemençe of the Black Sea (Turkish: Karadeniz kemençesi), also called the Pontic kemenche or Pontic lyra (Greek: Ποντιακή λύρα), is a box-shaped lute (321.322 in the Hornbostel-Sachs system). The classical kemençe (Turkish: Klasik kemençe or Armudî kemençe, Greek: Πολίτικη Λύρα) is a bowl-shaped lute (321.321).
Other bowed instruments with names from the same Persian origin include the kamancheh (or Kabak kemane in Turkish), a spike lute (321.31), and the Cappadocian kemane, an instrument closely related to the Kemençe of the Black Sea but with added sympathetic strings. Circassians have a similar instrument named the Shikepshine, which means "horse tail violin."