Luthier By Deane Barker • April 14, 2023 • Definition: one who builds or repairs stringed instruments The word comes from “lute,” which was an early guitar. Why I Looked It Up I was driving home from the airport in Sioux Falls when I saw a new shop advertising itself as “Certified Luthiers.” Postscript Added on July 15, 2023 From a profile of Yo Yo Ma in Spark: How Genius Ignites, From Child Prodigies to Late Bloomers: …beginning with a reference from Isaac Stern, who had heard Ma play in Paris at the advice of a famed luthier named Étienne Vatelot.