πολυφωνία

Forms

πολῠφωνίᾱ (poluphōníā) f (genitive πολῠφωνίᾱς); first declension^[1]

Etymology

It is from Ancient Greek πολύφωνος (polúphōnos, “many-voiced, having many sounds”) with the abstract suffix -ία (-íā).^[1][2][3] The adjective is a compound of πολύς (polús, “many”) and φωνή (phōnḗ, “voice, sound”).^[1][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

It is first found in Diodorus Siculus (1st century BC), of the variety of sounds that birds make.^[5][6][7]

Semantic evolution

The word meant a variety or multiplicity of sounds and voices: Plutarch uses it of the many tones of the auloi, and Josephus of the variety of speech that arose after the tower of Babel.^[5][3] It also meant talkativeness, an abundance of words.^[3][8]

Medieval Greek kept it, above all for the existence of many languages after Babel.^[9] The modern sense “polyphony” in music is a learned use modelled on French polyphonie: Modern Greek πολυφωνία (polyfonía) is music in which several independent melodies sound together, and figuratively a variety of opinions.^[10][11] The English word polyphony (1828) comes from the Greek word, at first meaning “multiplicity of sounds”.^[4]

Timeline

• 1st century BC – Diodorus Siculus uses it of the varied cries of birds.^[5][6][7]
• 1st century AD – Josephus uses it of the variety of languages after Babel.^[5][6][7]
• 1st–2nd century AD – Plutarch uses it of the many tones of the auloi.^[5][6][7]
• 1100–1669 – Medieval vernacular texts use it of the many languages after Babel.^[9]
• 1828 – English borrows it as polyphony.^[4]
• Modern Greek – πολυφωνία (polyfonía) means polyphony in music, after French.^[10][11]

Meanings

Noun

1. A variety or multiplicity of tones, sounds or voices.^[5][3][8]
2. A variety of speech or languages.^[5][9]
3. Loquacity, an abundance of words.^[3]

Related words

• πολύφωνος (polúphōnos)
• φωνή (phōnḗ)
• English polyphony

References

1. ^ a b c d e f Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ Bailly, Anatole (2020), Dictionnaire grec-français, Bailly 2020 Hugo Chávez ed., ed. Gérard Gréco et al.
3. ^ a b c d e Malhadas, Daisi; Dezotti, Maria Celeste C.; Neves, Maria Helena de Moura, eds. (2006–2010), Dicionário Grego-Português, São Paulo: Ateliê; digital ed. 3 (2022), UNESP Araraquara
4. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
5. ^ a b c d e f g Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; Jones, Henry Stuart (1940), A Greek-English Lexicon, 9th ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
6. ^ a b c d Keersmaekers, Alek (2021–2025), GLAUx: The Greek Language Automated corpus, https://github.com/alekkeersmaekers/glaux
7. ^ a b c d Rodríguez Adrados, Francisco, et al., eds. (1980–), Diccionario Griego-Español, Madrid: CSIC, http://dge.cchs.csic.es/xdge
8. ^ a b Korinthios, J. (2025), Grande Dizionario Greco Classico: Greco–Italiano, digital ed., Milan: Hoepli
9. ^ a b c Kriaras, Emmanuel, Επιτομή του Λεξικού της μεσαιωνικής ελληνικής δημώδους γραμματείας 1100–1669, Κέντρο Ελληνικής Γλώσσας, https://www.greek-language.gr
10. ^ a b Ινστιτούτο Νεοελληνικών Σπουδών (Ίδρυμα Μανόλη Τριανταφυλλίδη) (1998), Λεξικό της κοινής νεοελληνικής, Thessaloniki: Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
11. ^ a b Πάπυρος–Larousse–Britannica, Μέγα Λεξικό της Ελληνικής Γλώσσας, Athens: Πάπυρος