Cello
/ˈtʃɛl.oʊ/noun
A bowed string instrument of the violin family, pitched lower than the viola and higher than the double bass.
Did you know?The word cello comes from Italian violoncello, a diminutive of violone, meaning a “large viol,” so its name literally traces back to the idea of a big, low stringed instrument.
Etymological Timeline
Late Latin
LL
vitula
“A stringed instrument or lyre-like instrument; the ancestral source behind the European viol family terms.”
Medieval Latin
ML
vitula / vitulari
“Used in forms that helped shape the Romance names for bowed string instruments, though the exact pathway is debated.”
Italian
IT
violone
“A large viol, literally a “big viol.””
Italian
IT
violoncello
“A smaller violone; literally “little big viol.””
18th Century
EN
cello
“Shortened form of violoncello, used in English for the instrument.”