Editing Hammered dulcimer (section)

== History ==
The [[santur]], a type of hammered dulcimer, originates from the [[Middle East]]. The earliest evidence comes from [[Assyria]]n and [[Babylonia]]n stone carvings dated to 669 BC, showing the instrument being played while hanging from the player's neck. This instrument was traded and travelled to different parts of the Middle East. Musicians modified the original design over the centuries, yielding a wide array of musical scales and tunings. The original santur was likely made with wood and stone and strung with goat intestines. The Babylonian santur was the ancestor of the [[harp]], [[yangqin]], [[harpsichord]], [[Qanun (instrument)|qanun]], [[cimbalom]] and hammered dulcimers.<ref name=Touma>{{cite book|last1=Touma|first1=Habib Hasan|title=The Music of the Arabs|date=1996|publisher=Amadeus Press|location=Portland, Oregon|isbn=0-931340-88-8}}</ref> 

In Western Europe, a hammered dulcimer first appears in textual and iconographic sources from the early 15th century.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Gifford |first=Paul M. |title=The Hammered Dulcimer |date=2001-06-13 |publisher=Scarecrow Press |isbn=978-0-8108-3943-4 |edition=First |location=Lanham, Md. London}}</ref> The hammered dulcimer was extensively used during the Middle Ages in England, France, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, and Spain.