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Where does the word "komuz" come from? It comes from Old Turkic qobuz, passing through Kyrgyz before entering English (1900s).
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Where does the word "komuz" come from? It comes from Old Turkic qobuz, passing through Kyrgyz before entering English (1900s).
Komuz’s story begins in Old Turkic: qobuz meant “stringed instrument.” A general name for stringed instruments among the early Turks. By medieval, the word had taken hold in Kyrgyz as komuz. Accompanied reciters of the Kyrgyz 'Manas' epic. It reached English by 1900s as komuz. Entered English through ethnomusicology and Kyrgyz music. Today, komuz means a fretless three-stringed lute of Kyrgyzstan.
- Stage 1 · Old Turkic · medieval qobuz "stringed instrument", a general name for stringed instruments among the early Turks.
- Stage 2 · Kyrgyz · medieval komuz "three-stringed lute", accompanied reciters of the Kyrgyz 'Manas' epic.
- Stage 3 · English · 1900s komuz "Kyrgyz lute", entered English through ethnomusicology and Kyrgyz music.