Bowed string instrument


Bowed string instruments are a subcategory of string instruments that are played by a bow rubbing the strings. The bow rubbing the string causes vibration which the instrument emits as sound.
The Arabic rabāb is the earliest known bowed instrument, and the ancestor of all European bowed instruments, including the rebec, lyra and violin.

List of bowed string instruments

Violin family

;Variants on the standard members of the violin family include:
The following instruments are sounded by means of a turning wheel that acts as the bow.