What it means
عود (ud) is a short-necked, pear-shaped lute with a rounded body and no frets. The word comes from Arabic عود, meaning “wood” or “stick,” and the instrument itself has deep roots in Persian, Arab, and broader Middle Eastern musical traditions. In Persian classical music it is sometimes contrasted with the تار (târ), the long-necked lute that is more distinctly Iranian in character.
How to use it
- داری عود میزنی؟ (Dâri ud mizani?) “Do you play the oud?”
- صدای عود خیلی دلنشینه. (Sedâ-ye ud kheyli delnashin-e.) “The sound of the oud is really soothing.”
- عود یه ساز خیلی قدیمیه. (Ud ye sâz kheyli qadimi-ye.) “The oud is a very ancient instrument.”
- تو این کنسرت یه نوازنده عود هم بود. (Tu in konsert ye navâzande-ye ud ham bud.) “There was an oud player in that concert too.”
Cultural note
The oud is considered the ancestor of the European lute, whose name comes from the Arabic article plus the word: al-ud. In Iran the oud has been played since at least the Sassanid era, and medieval Persian poets and scholars such as Farabi wrote about its construction and tuning. Today it appears in both classical Persian ensembles and in fusion music bridging Iran, the Arab world, and Turkey.