  the oud (;  Ê¿Å«d, plural: Ø£Ø¹ÙØ§Ø¯, aâwÄd; , assyrian:Ü¥ÜÜ Å«d,  hebrew: ×¢×Ö¼×; , barbat; ; ;gÃ¼ncel tÃ¼rkÃ§e sÃ¶zlÃ¼k'te sÃ¶z arama  azeri: ud;  or kaban) is a pear-shaped stringed instrument commonly used in arabic, greek, turkish, persian, jewish, byzantine, azerbaijanian, armenian, north african (chaabi, classical, and spanish andalusian), somali and middle eastern music. construction of the oud is similar to that of the lute. the modern oud and the european lute both descend from a common ancestor via diverging paths. the oud is readily distinguished from the lute by its lack of frets and smaller neck. alongside the lute, it is considered an ancestor of the guitar.summerfield, maurice j. (2003). the classical guitar, its evolution, players and personalities since 1800 (5th ed.) blaydon on tyne: ashley mark publishing. isbn 1-872639-46-1 ==origin of name== the origin of the name oud (and its etymological cousin, lute) for the musical instrument is uncertain. the arabic Ø§ÙØ¹ÙØ¯ (al-Ê¿Å«d) literally denotes a thin piece of wood similar to the shap
Arab_culture Arabic_musical_instruments Armenian_musical_instruments Continuous_pitch_instruments Early_musical_instruments Greek_musical_instruments Instruments_of_Ottoman_classical_music Instruments_of_Turkish_makam_music Necked_bowl_lutes Oud_players Turkish_musical_instruments