  a luthier ( )oxford dictionaries is someone who makes or repairs lutes and other string instruments. the term is used interchangeably with any term that refers to a specific, or specialty type of stringed instrument, such as violin maker, guitar maker, lute maker, etc. the word luthier comes from the french word luth, which means lute. the craft of making string instruments, or lutherie, is commonly divided into two main categories: makers of stringed instruments that are plucked or strummed and makers of stringed instruments that are bowed. since bowed instruments require a bow, the second category includes a subtype known as a bow maker or archetier.  == plucked strings == === lutes === important luthiers who specialized in the instruments of the lute family (lutes, archlutes, theorbos, vihuelas etc.): * tieffenbrucker family * martin hoffmann * christopher mamani * constanza correa * sebastiÃ¡n llanos thumb|the varnishing of a violin and in modern times: * andrew rutherford * cezar mateus * gilberto grÃ¡cio * peter oberg === guitars ===  two important luthiers of the early 19th century connected with the development of the modern classical guitar are louis panormo and georg staufer.the guitar (from the renaissance to the present day) by harvey turnbull (third impression 1978) - publisher: batsford. p68 (ponormo) and p70 (georg staufer) - chapter 4 (the development of the instrument) antonio torres jurado is credited with developing the form of classical guitar that is still in use today. christian frederick martin of germany developed a form that evolved into the modern steel-string acoustic guitar. the american luthier orville gibson specialized in mandolins, and is credited with creating the archtop guitar. the important 20th century american luthiers john d'angelico and jimmy d'aquisto made archtop guitars. lloyd loar worked briefly for the gibson guitar corporation making mandolins and guitars. his designs for a family of arch top instruments (mandolin,
Lutherie Woodworking