. . . . "The ba\u011Flama (Turkish: ba\u011Flama, from ba\u011Flamak, \"to tie\", pronounced [ba\u02D0\u026Ba\u02C8ma]) is a stringed musical instrument shared by various cultures in the Eastern Mediterranean, Near East, and Central Asia regions.It is sometimes referred to as the saz (from the Persian \u0633\u0627\u0632\u200E, meaning a kit or set), it is also sometimes referred as the \"cura\", although the term \"saz\" actually refers to a family of plucked string instruments, long-necked lutes used in Ottoman classical music, Turkish folk music, Azeri music, Kurdish music, Assyrian music, Armenian music, and in parts of Syria, Iraq and the Balkan countries.Instruments resembling today's ba\u011Flama have been found in archaeological excavations of Sumerian and Hittite mounds in Anatolia dating before Common Era, and in ancient Greek works.According to The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, \"the terms 'ba\u011Flama' and 'saz' are used somewhat interchangeably in Turkey.\"Like the Western lute and the Middle-Eastern oud, it has a deep round back, but a much longer neck. "@en . .