The rebec (sometimes rebecha, rebeckha, and other spellings, pronounced /ˈriːbɛk/ or /ˈrɛbɛk/) is a bowed stringed instrument of the Medieval era and the early Renaissance.

Popular from the 13th to 16th centuries, the introduction of the rebec into Western Europe coincided with the Arabic conquest of the Iberian Peninsula.

[7] Medieval sources refer to the instrument by several other names, including kit and the generic term fiddle.

[8] A distinguishing feature of the rebec is that the bowl (or body) of the instrument is carved from a solid piece of wood.

It is possible to attribute this discrepancy to the fact that frets on bowed instruments appeared in Europe in the early renaissance, but not in England until the 15th century.

[11] Hugh Rebeck is a minor character in William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, one of the musicians called by Peter in an oft-cut scene.

A rebec featured prominently in one of Ellis Peters' (12th century) Brother Cadfael stories: Liliwin, the title character of The Sanctuary Sparrow, earned his living by playing that instrument.