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Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)

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First published 1960 (SND Vol. V).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.

Quotation dates: 1825

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KYTHELS, n.pl. A musical instrument of some sort, the exact meaning being uncertain. The “or” in the quot. may imply a real alternative, not one of name only.Slg. 1825 in W. Hone Every-day Bk. (1827) II. 20:
A musician . . . played the kythels or stock-and-horn, a musical instrument made of the thigh-bone of a sheep and the horn of a bullock.

[Orig. obscure. The form, if genuine, suggests a corruption of †Eng. citole, cither, < Lat. cithara, Gr. κιθαρα]

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"Kythels n. pl.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 18 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/snd/kythels>

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