In the Qin Dynasty, it was called "Xian Tuo". Mao Qiling of the Qing Dynasty believed that the sanxian evolved from the Qin Dynasty musical instrument Xiantu. "Xihe Cihua": "Sanxian originated in the Qin Dynasty. It was originally a system of thirty drums and drums, but it was changed in shape and easy to sound. It was called drums and drums. During the Tang Dynasty, music people were often used to it, and the world thought it was Hu music.
The saying comes from the "Old Tang Book", but the "Old Tang Book" records that Xian Tuo is the predecessor of the pipa, which is different from Mao Qiling's statement.

In the literature, the name of sanxian first appeared in the Tang Dynasty, but it is uncertain whether the sanxian in the Tang Dynasty is the same as the modern sanxian. The earliest records of modern sanxian began in the Ming Dynasty, and it is said that it appeared in the Yuan Dynasty.
Sanxian is also a traditional Manchu musical instrument. For example, it is recorded in the "Emperor Manchu Ceremony to Sacrifice God and Heaven" that Sanxian is used as one of the musical instruments to play Kagura. He Changlin, a scholar of the People's Republic of China, advocated that the sanxian was invented by the Manchus.