rebana

re·​ba·​na rə-ˈbä-nə 

variants or less commonly rabana

plural rebana also rabana

: any of various diverse drums of Malaysia and Indonesia used especially in Muslim religious ceremonies

In fact rebana is a general term for certain drums in Malaysia, many of which are frame drums …

—Matt Dean, The Drum, 2012

In 1724, Valentijn mentioned that four or more twelve-year-old girls danced and sang at Ternate to the accompaniment of a rabana, a round, not very thick drum, played with a small gong.

—Virginia Matheson Hooker, Culture and Society in New Order Indonesia, 1993

Word History

First Known Use

1847, in the meaning defined above

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