Violin    (Fr. violon; Ger. Violine, Geige; It. violino; Sp. violín).

Soprano member of the family of string instruments that includes the viola and cello (the Double bass is also usually considered to be a member of the violin family though in some of its features – all explicable in terms of the practicalities of playing such a large instrument – the influence of the Viol family is apparent: it is tuned in 4ths rather than 5ths, historically had a variable number of strings and normally has sloping shoulders and a flat back that is ‘broken’ so that the upper section slopes inward towards the neck). In the Hornbostel-Sachs system the violin is classified as a Chordophone: bowed lute (or fiddle).

(from The Grove dictionary of Music)

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