<!-- Tabla Meaning in Punjabi | Jugti -->
Source: https://jugti.com/kosh/words/tabla/

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Word

# ਤਬਲਾ

Tabla

Say it**tub-LAA**Type**Noun**Shahmukhiطَبْلَہ

In short

Tabla (ਤਬਲਾ) is a pair of small hand drums and the principal percussion instrument of Hindustani classical music. Played with the fingers and palms, it keeps the beat in classical concerts, qawwali, kathak dance and Sikh kirtan. Its two drums, the treble dayan and the bass bayan, sound so different that one pair can carry a whole rhythm on its own.

## How it's used

1. 1ਤਬਲੇ ਦੀ ਥਾਪ ਤੇ ਸਾਰੇ ਨੱਚਣ ਲੱਗ ਪਏ।At the beat of the tabla, everyone began to dance. _The tabla sets the beat_
2. 2ਕੀਰਤਨ ਵਿੱਚ ਤਬਲਾ ਅਤੇ ਹਾਰਮੋਨੀਅਮ ਇਕੱਠੇ ਵਜਦੇ ਹਨ।In kirtan the tabla and the harmonium are played together. _Tabla and harmonium_
3. 3ਉਸਤਾਦ ਨੇ ਤਬਲੇ ਉੱਤੇ ਕਹਿਰਵਾ ਤਾਲ ਵਜਾਇਆ।The ustad played the keharwa taal on the tabla. _A rhythm cycle_
Show 2 more examples
1. 4ਦਾਯਾਂ ਦੀ ਆਵਾਜ਼ ਉੱਚੀ ਅਤੇ ਬਾਯਾਂ ਦੀ ਗੂੜ੍ਹੀ ਹੁੰਦੀ ਹੈ।The dayan sounds bright and the bayan sounds deep. _The two drums_
2. 5ਬੱਚਾ ਤਬਲਾ ਸਿੱਖਣ ਲਈ ਉਸਤਾਦ ਕੋਲ ਜਾਂਦਾ ਹੈ।The child goes to the ustad to learn the tabla. _Learning tabla_

ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਵਿੱਚ ਅਰਥ

ਤਬਲਾ ਹੱਥ ਨਾਲ ਵਜਾਉਣ ਵਾਲੇ ਛੋਟੇ ਢੋਲਾਂ ਦੀ ਜੋੜੀ ਹੈ। ਇਸ ਦਾ ਨਾਂ ਅਰਬੀ ਸ਼ਬਦ ਤਬਲ ਤੋਂ ਆਇਆ ਹੈ, ਜਿਸ ਦਾ ਅਰਥ ਹੈ ਢੋਲ। ਇਸ ਦੇ ਦੋ ਢੋਲ ਹਨ: ਉੱਚੀ ਆਵਾਜ਼ ਵਾਲਾ ਦਾਯਾਂ ਅਤੇ ਗੂੜ੍ਹੀ ਆਵਾਜ਼ ਵਾਲਾ ਬਾਯਾਂ। ਤਬਲਾ ਕੀਰਤਨ, ਕੱਵਾਲੀ ਅਤੇ ਸ਼ਾਸਤਰੀ ਸੰਗੀਤ ਵਿੱਚ ਤਾਲ ਰੱਖਦਾ ਹੈ।

What does tabla mean in Punjabi? Tabla (ਤਬਲਾ) is a pair of small hand drums, the principal percussion instrument of Hindustani classical music. Played with the fingers and palms of both hands, it keeps the beat in classical concerts, qawwali, kathak dance and Sikh kirtan, and its two drums sound so different that one pair can carry a whole rhythm.

## What does tabla mean in Punjabi?

Tabla is the Punjabi and Hindi word for a pair of small hand drums. The name likely comes from tabl, the Arabic word for drum, and Rekhta Dictionary gives the same Arabic origin. Since the 18th century the tabla has been the principal percussion instrument of Hindustani classical music, where it is played solo, as an accompaniment to singers and other instruments, or as part of a larger ensemble. It is also heard in folk and popular music across India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal.

## What are the two drums of the tabla?

The two drums could hardly be more different. The smaller drum, the dayan, is played with the right hand and gives the bright, treble sound. It is made of hollowed-out wood, about fifteen centimetres across, and tuned to a single note, usually the tonic of the raga. The larger drum, the bayan, is played with the left hand and gives the deep bass sound. It is kettle-shaped, often made of brass or copper, and the player changes its pitch by pressing the heel of the hand on the skin. Each drumhead carries a black patch of tuning paste called syahi, which gives the tabla its clear, bell-like tone. The player sits cross-legged and strikes the skins with fingers and palms, speaking the rhythms in syllables called bol.

## Where did the tabla come from?

Nobody knows exactly where the tabla came from, and scholars still argue about it. Carvings in the Bhaja Caves show a woman playing a pair of small drums, and the ancient Sanskrit text Natyashastra describes drums built in a similar way, with the same paste patches on their skins. Clear pictures of the drum as we know it appear only from about 1745, and it took its modern shape in the early 1800s. A popular legend says the poet-musician Amir Khusrau made the tabla by cutting the barrel drum called pakhawaj in two, but no writing from his time mentions the drum, and most scholars treat the story as legend rather than history.

## Where do you hear tabla in Punjab?

In Punjab the tabla is first of all the drum of kirtan. In gurdwaras it keeps time for the singing of Gurbani, usually beside the harmonium, and it is one of the main instruments of qawwali as well. It backs classical singers and kathak dancers, and it turns up in folk song and bhangra too. Tabla players learn in gharanas, schools of playing passed from teacher to student, each with its own style of bols and compositions.

## Related words

[ਕੀਰਤਨkirtanDevotional singing of hymns](https://jugti.com/kosh/words/kirtan/)[ਢੋਲdholPunjab's double-headed folk drum](https://jugti.com/kosh/words/dhol/)[ਸਾਰੰਗੀsarangibowed folk fiddle, the dhadi singer's lead instrument](https://jugti.com/kosh/words/sarangi/)[ਸੰਗੀਤSangeetA pre-wedding evening of music, song and dance, when the two families celebrate the couple before the wedding](https://jugti.com/kosh/words/sangeet/)[ਭੰਗੜਾbhangraPunjab's harvest folk dance](https://jugti.com/kosh/words/bhangra/)

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Sources (4)
1. [Wikipedia, Tabla: a pair of hand drums from the Indian subcontinent; principal percussion in Hindustani classical music since the 18th century; essential in bhajan and kirtan; one of the main qawwali instruments; word likely from Arabic tabl; origin contested; Bhaja Caves carvings; clear pictorial evidence only from about 1745; Natyashastra describes tabla-like drums and syahi paste patches; dayan about 15 cm, tuned to Sa; bayan about 20 cm, heel pressure changes pitch; bols are the spoken syllables](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabla)
2. [Britannica, Tabla: pair of small drums, a cornerstone of Indian classical music since the 18th century; the higher-pitched dayan is played with the right hand, the larger bass bayan with the left](https://www.britannica.com/art/tabla?ref=heavyblogisheavy.com)
3. [Darbar, The Tabla: North India's favourite percussion instrument: word thought to come from Arabic tabl; dayan and bayan; legend of Amir Khusrau cutting a pakhawaj in two; growth linked to khayal singing and kathak dance at Lucknow and Benares](https://darbar.org/the-tabla-north-indias-favourite-percussion-instrument/)
4. [Rekhta Dictionary, tabla: Arabic origin; masculine noun, a small drum, a pair of small drums played together; Urdu spelling طَبْلَہ](https://rekhtadictionary.com/meaning-of-tabla?keyword=%DA%88%D9%8F%DA%AF%D9%92%DA%88%D9%8F%DA%AF%DB%8C)
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On this page[In short](#in-short)[How it's used](#how-used)[ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਵਿੱਚ ਅਰਥ](#pa-meaning)[What does tabla mean in Punjabi?](#s-b002)[What are the two drums of the tabla?](#s-b004)[Where did the tabla come from?](#s-b006)[Where do you hear tabla in Punjab?](#s-b008)

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