[3] Early ancestors include the Arabic rebab and the medieval European vielle,[4][5] but later, more directly possible ancestors include the Venetian viole[6] and the 15th- and 16th-century Spanish vihuela, a six-course plucked instrument tuned like a lute (and also like a present-day viol)[7][5] that (at the time) looked like, but was quite distinct from, the four-course guitar[8] (an earlier chordophone).

Additional differences include tuning strategy—in fourths, with a third in the middle, rather than in fifths (similar to a lute)—the presence of frets, and underhand rather than overhand bow grip.

Notably, "violist" is a homograph of the word commonly used since the mid-20th century to refer to a player of the viola, which can cause confusion in written/printed texts when not clear from the context.

[5] However, Stefano Pio (2012) argues that a re-examination of documents in light of new data indicates an origin different than the vihuela de arco from Aragon.

Nonetheless, a ten-year span brought the birth and diffusion in Italy of a new family of instruments (viola da gamba, or viols).

This inconsistency is justified, Pio argues, only by assuming the invention (in the latter 15th century) of a larger instrument derived from the medieval violetta, which gradually added more strings to allow greater extension to the low register.

A low seventh string was supposedly added in France to the bass viol by Monsieur de Sainte-Colombe (c. 1640–1690), whose students included the French gamba virtuoso and composer Marin Marais.

Viols were first constructed much like the vihuela de mano, with all surfaces, top, back, and sides made from flat slabs or pieces of joined wood, bent or curved as required.

The flat backs of most viols have a sharply angled break or canted bend in their surface close to where the neck meets the body.

If one were to go searching for very early viols with smooth-curved figure-eight bodies, like those found on the only slightly later plucked vihuelas and the modern guitar, they would be out of luck.

The lute- and vihuela-like round or oval ports or rosettes became a standard feature of German and Austrian viols and were retained to the very end.

In some of these schemes, the two strands of the gut that form the fret are separated so that the player can finger a slightly sharper or flatter version of a note (for example G♯ versus A♭) to suit different circumstances.

Descriptions and illustrations of viols are found in numerous early 16th-century musical treatises, including those authored by: Both Agricola's and Gerle's works were published in various editions.

Diego Ortiz published Trattado de Glosas (Rome, 1553), an important book of music for the viol with both examples of ornamentation and pieces called Recercadas.

Composers like Jean-Baptiste Barrière, Georg Phillipp Telemann and Marin Marais wrote solo- and ensemble pieces for treble or pardessus.

This may be due to the increased availability of reasonably priced instruments from companies using more automated production techniques, coupled with the greater accessibility of early music editions and historic treatises.

In the 1970s, the now-defunct Guitar and Lute Workshop in Honolulu generated resurgent interest in the viol and traditional luthierie methods within the western United States.

[26] They are studied and copied by violin makers, contributing to the extension of the general knowledge we have on the viola da gamba, its forms, and the different techniques used for its manufacture.

The film's bestselling soundtrack features performances by Jordi Savall, one of the best-known modern viola da gamba players.

Among the foremost modern players of the viol are Alison Crum, Vittorio Ghielmi, Susanne Heinrich, Wieland Kuijken, Paolo Pandolfo, Andrea de Carlo, Hille Perl and Jonathan Dunford.

Fretwork has been most active in this regard, commissioning George Benjamin, Michael Nyman, Elvis Costello, Sir John Tavener, Orlando Gough, John Woolrich, Tan Dun, Alexander Goehr, Fabrice Fitch, Andrew Keeling, Thea Musgrave, Sally Beamish, Peter Sculthorpe, Gavin Bryars, Barrington Pheloung, Simon Bainbridge, Duncan Druce, Poul Ruders, Ivan Moody, and Barry Guy; many of these compositions may be heard on their 1997 CD Sit Fast.

The Yukimi Kambe Viol Consort has commissioned and recorded many works by David Loeb, and the New York Consort of Viols has commissioned Bülent Arel, David Loeb, Daniel Pinkham, Tison Street, Frank Russo, Seymour Barab, William Presser, and Will Ayton, many of these compositions appearing on their 1993 CD Illicita Cosa.

Jay Elfenbein[permanent dead link‍] has also written works for the Yukimi Kambe Viol Consort, Les Voix Humaines, and Elliot Z. Levine, among others.

Other composers for viols include Moondog, Kevin Volans, Roy Whelden, Toyohiko Satoh, Roman Turovsky, Giorgio Pacchioni, Michael Starke, Emily Doolittle, and Jan Goorissen.

Composer Henry Vega has written pieces for the Viol: "Ssolo," developed at the Institute for Sonology and performed by Karin Preslmayr, as well as for Netherlands-based ensemble The Roentgen Connection in 2011 with "Slow slower" for recorder, viola da gamba, harpsichord and computer.

The Aston Magna Music Festival has recently commissioned works including viol from composers Nico Muhly and Alex Burtzos.

[28][29] The Italian contemporary composer Carlotta Ferrari has written two pieces for viol: "Le ombre segrete" in 2015,[30][31] and "Profondissimi affetti" in 2016, this latter being based on RPS modal harmony system.

[32][33] Since the early 1980s, numerous instrument makers, including Eric Jensen, Francois Danger, Jan Goorissen, and Jonathan Wilson, have experimented with the design and construction of electric viols.

Electric viols range from Danger's minimally electrified acoustic/electric Altra line to Eric Jensen's solid-body brace-mounted design.

When Monteverdi called simply for "viole da braccio" in "Orfeo", the composer was requesting violas as well as treble and bass instruments.