ABSTRACT The ekonting is a plucked lute played by people of the Jola ethnic group in Senegal, Gambia, and Guinea-Bissau. It has received considerable public attention in the past twenty years due to its historical link to early American gourd banjos. However, existing scholarship on the ekonting is limited and has thus far focused primarily on its connection to banjo history without considering the meaning and role of the instrument in the context of Jola culture. Drawing from sixteen months of fieldwork in Senegal and Gambia, this essay provides historical material on the ekonting from both Jola oral tradition and written documentation, analyses the significance of ekonting materials and decoration, and describes its typical performance style and settings. It includes transcription, translation, and analysis of two ekonting songs, offering new information highlighting the many ways that the ekonting is interwoven with other aspects of Jola culture.

中文翻译：

---

Jola 文化和历史中的 Ekonting

摘要 Ekonting 是一种弹拨琵琶，由塞内加尔、冈比亚和几内亚比绍的乔拉族人演奏。由于其与早期美国葫芦班卓琴的历史联系，它在过去二十年中受到了相当大的公众关注。然而，现有的关于 ekonting 的学术研究是有限的，迄今为止主要集中在它与班卓琴历史的联系上，而没有考虑该乐器在 Jola 文化背景下的意义和作用。本文以在塞内加尔和冈比亚 16 个月的实地考察为基础，从 Jola 口述传统和书面文献中提供了有关 Ekonting 的历史材料，分析了 Ekonting 材料和装饰的意义，并描述了其典型的表演风格和设置。它包括转录、翻译和分析两首 ekonting 歌曲，