Etymograph

English

guitar

Guitar comes from Spanish guitarra, from Arabic قِيثَارَة, via Aramaic, from Ancient Greek κιθάρα ‘cithara, lyre’.

  1. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEκιθάρα1‘cithara, lyre’
  2. Aramaicc. 1000 BCE–700 CEקיתרא1‘any stringed musical instrument’
  3. Arabicc. 500–presentقِيثَارَة1‘guitar; lyre’
  4. Old Spanishc. 950–1500guitarra1‘guitar’
  5. Spanishc. 1500–presentguitarra2
  6. Englishearliest quotation 2020guitar2

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Spanish guitarra
  2. 2 Wiktionary, English guitar
  3. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2020, Becky Manawatu, Auē: “We guitared and drummed and head banged and pianoed.”.

Lineage

  1. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEκιθάραWiktionary, Spanish guitarra‘cithara, lyre’
  2. Aramaicc. 1000 BCE–700 CEקיתראWiktionary, Spanish guitarra‘any stringed musical instrument’
  3. Arabicc. 500–presentقِيثَارَةWiktionary, Spanish guitarra‘guitar; lyre’
  4. Old Spanishc. 950–1500guitarraWiktionary, Spanish guitarra‘guitar’
  5. Spanishc. 1500–presentguitarraWiktionary, English guitar
  6. Englishearliest quotation 2020guitarWiktionary, English guitar. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2020, Becky Manawatu, Auē: “We guitared and drummed and head banged and pianoed.”

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Today it means

noun A stringed musical instrument, of European origin, usually with a fretted fingerboard and six strings, played with the fingers or a plectrum (guitar pick).

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “guitar”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entry for Spanish guitarra. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Ancient Greek κιθάρα / guitar