Ramkie
African type of guitar
title: "Ramkie" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["southern-african-musical-instruments", "guitar-family-instruments"] description: "African type of guitar" topic_path: "arts" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramkie" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary African type of guitar ::
::data[format=table title="Infobox Instrument"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | Ramkie |
| image | ramkie.jpg |
| image_capt | A 6 string fretted Ramkie. |
| background | string |
| classification | String instrument |
| hornbostel_sachs_desc | Composite chordophone |
| developed | South Africa |
| :: |
|name= Ramkie |names= |image=ramkie.jpg |image_capt=A 6 string fretted Ramkie. |background=string |classification=String instrument |hornbostel_sachs= |hornbostel_sachs_desc=Composite chordophone |developed= South Africa |range= |related= |articles=
::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bc/Ramkies.jpg" caption="A pair of 3 string fretless Ramkies."] ::
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 (or similar) for the soundbox. It has three or four strings (rarely six like a 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 and Bantu speakers, and the gourd body replaced by wood or a tin can. ::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1a/COLLECTIE_TROPENMUSEUM_Langhalsluit_met_4_snaren_TMnr_4185-1.jpg" caption="Ramkie, pre-1974, Rhodesia, Zambia."] ::
References
References
- "ATLAS of Plucked Instruments - Africa".
- ":: Township Guitars :: African Oil Can Guitars".
- "Die Ramkie auf ihrem Weg zur AfriCan - Guitar".
- "The Stringed Instrument Database".
- Rycroft, David K.. "Ramkie".
::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::