Talharpa
Talharpa
String instrument
The talharpa, also known as a tagelharpa (tail-hair harp), hiiu kannel (originally hiiurootsi (which meant Vormsi island located on the half way to Hiiumaa) kannel) or stråkharpa (bowed harp), is a two to four stringed bowed lyre from northern Europe. It is questionable whether it was formerly common and widespread in Scandinavia. Historically, it has been played in the Estonian-Swedish areas and in Western Estonia, particularly among Estonian Swedes who came to Estonia around the 10th century from the Swedish part of Finland; they likely brought the instrument with them (later Swedish settlers in Estonia did not know nor use the talharpa.)[1] It is similar to the Finnish jouhikko and the Welsh crwth. Jouhikko, a close relative of talharpa, is still known in Finland.[2]
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The name talharpa probably comes from a dialectical form of the word "tagel" – horsehair – from which the strings were made.[3]