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The Ramkie (also called an ''Afri-can'') is a type of guitar usually made in South Africa, Botswana, Zambia, Namibia and Malawi. It is made using a discarded
oil can
An oil can (oilcan or oiler)guitar), made of fishing wire or bicycle brake wire, and may be fretted or fretless. The instrument has apparently always been used for repetitive chord-playing, not melodic patterns.
History
The instrument is recorded as early as 1730 among the Khoikhoi people in the Cape, although its earlier history is unclear. Such early ramkies had a gourd for its body. The name probably comes from Portuguese "rabequinha" ("little violin"). It was later adapted by the San andBantu
Bantu may refer to:
*Bantu languages, constitute the largest sub-branch of the Niger–Congo languages
*Bantu peoples, over 400 peoples of Africa speaking a Bantu language
*Bantu knots, a type of African hairstyle
*Black Association for Nationali ...
speakers, and the gourd body replaced by wood or a tin can.
See also
*Segankuru
The segankuru is a bowed trough zither, bar zither or musical bow, a string instrument found in Botswana and other areas of South Africa, and found under many names. It consists of a wooden body attached to a tin can resonator, with a single metal ...
. Fiddle made similarly to Ramkie, from Southern Africa.
References
{{Reflist Southern African musical instruments Guitar family instruments