Lamellaphone is a family of musical instruments. The name comes from Latin "lamella", "plate" and Greek root "phone" for "sound". The name derives from the way the sound is produced: thin plates, or "tongues" are fixed at one end, while the other end if free. When a musicial presses the free end by a finger, it slips off, and the relased plate vibrates. A tongue may be plucked either from the top or from the bottom.

Lamellaphones are a category of plucked idiophones: included in this catagory are the African "thumb-pianos" described below, as well as the various forms of Jew's Harp and the European mechanical music box.

A large number of lamellaphones originate in Africa, where they are known under the names sanza, kisanji , likembe, mbira, mbila , kalimba. They were reported as early as in the 16th century, but there is no doubt they have much earlier history. Caribbean marimbula is also of this family.

The tongues may be aranged in the manner of piano and may be made small enough, hence its colloquial name "thumb piano".

Some conjecture that African lamellaphones were derived from xylophones and marimbas. On the other hand, e.g., indigenous peoples of Siberia know primitive wooden and metallic lamellaphones with a single tongue.

Lamellaphones may be made with or without resonators.