English

An antique guqin in the lianzhu form

Alternative forms

• (NB: these variants may be incorrect, but nevertheless may be encountered)
  • gu-qin, gu qin, gu qing, GuQin

Noun

guqin ‎(plural guqin or guqins)

1. (music) A plucked zither-like stringed instrument (chordophone), traditionally featuring seven unfretted strings, originating in ancient China.
   • 1982: The Times, 25 May 1982, p.10 col. C

     Among those who will be making the Otter valley resound to the strains of the guzheng and erhu is Wu Wenguang, who plays a piece of music 1,800 years old on the guqin, an instrument known to have existed 3,000 years ago.

Usage notes

• In the past, the guqin was referred to only as the qin, but it has the prefix gu- to distinguish it from other instruments which are also called qin. It can be referred to as qin after guqin is used in the first instance.
• The organology of the qin fits that of a zither, but in the past, it has been incorrectly referred to as a lute or harp.
• It is sometimes confused with the guzheng (古筝) which is a different stringed instrument.

Translations

See also

• 古琴 for more readings in CJK
• Appendix:Glossary of chordophones

References

• Zhang, Huaying (2005). Guqin 【古琴】. Guizhou: Zhejiang People's Publishing. ISBN 7-213-02955-X
• The North American Guqin Association (http://www.guqin.org)
• 2015. The Semantics of Chinese Music: Analysing selected Chinese musical concepts. Adrian Tien. Pg. 181.