The kwitra (also quwaytara, kouitra and quitra; in Arabic: الكوترة (a-kwitra)) is an Algerian stringed instrument, sometimes referred to as the Algerian lute.

[1][2] The instrument is tied to Andalusian musical traditions of Moorish people who were pushed out of the Iberian peninsula in the 15th century.

[2] That tradition has shrunk further; where the kwitra was once seen in Algeria, today it is mainly an Algerian instrument.

They usually have a carved soundhole in the shape of a bowl or vase.

Media related to Kwitra at Wikimedia Commons