ἀοιδός

Forms

ᾰ̓οιδός (aoidós) m (feminine ᾰ̓οιδή, neuter ᾰ̓οιδόν); first/second declension^[1] Attic ᾠδός (ōidós), the form also used in compounds.^[2][3]

Etymology

It is the agent noun of ἀείδω (aeídō, “to sing”), with the o-grade of the root, from Ancient Greek ἀείδω (aeídō) + -ός (-ós), like ἀοιδή (aoidḗ, “song”).^[3][1][4] Wiktionary reconstructs a Proto-Hellenic *awoidós (“singer”).^[1] In Attic it contracted to ᾠδός (ōidós).^[1][3]

The ablaut of the verb points to an Indo-European root Proto-Indo-European *h₂weyd-, but no cognate outside Greek is known.^[3] The verb is generally linked with αὐδή (audḗ, “voice”) and ἀηδών (aēdṓn, “nightingale”), but how the forms are related is disputed.^[5][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

In the Iliad singers lead the dirges at Hector's bier; in the Odyssey it is the title of the court bards Phemius and Demodocus, each called a “divine singer”, θεῖος (theîos) ἀοιδός.^[4][6]

Semantic evolution

Hesiod says that singers come from the Muses and Apollo, and calls the nightingale a songstress.^[6][2] Herodotus calls Arion the best singer of his time.^[6] In tragedy it is used with a genitive (singers of laments, of oracles), of the Sphinx with her riddling song, and once by Sophocles of an enchanter who heals by incantation.^[6][2] Theocritus calls the cock “the first singer”.^[6][2]

The uncontracted form remained poetic^[2]; Attic prose said ᾠδός (ōidós), which lives on in compounds such as τραγῳδός (tragōidós) and κιθαρῳδός (kitharōidós).^[2][3] Modern Greek αοιδός (aoidós) is a learned word: it names the bard of ancient epic and, after French chanteur, a professional opera singer.^[7][8]

Timeline

• Homer – The Iliad uses it of singers of dirges, and the Odyssey of court bards.^[4][6][9]
• Before the 6th century BC – Hesiod says that singers come from the Muses and Apollo, and that bard envies bard.^[6][9][10]
• 5th century BC – Herodotus calls Arion the best singer of his time, and Sophocles calls the Sphinx a singer.^[6][2][10]
• 4th century BC – Aristotle quotes the saying that bards tell many lies.^[6][10]
• 4th–3rd century BC – Theocritus calls the cock the first singer.^[6][2][10]
• Modern Greek – αοιδός (aoidós) is a learned word for an ancient bard and an opera singer.^[7][8]

Meanings

Noun

1. A singer, bard or minstrel, especially at funerals, banquets and festivals.^[6][2][4]
2. (feminine) A songstress; of the nightingale, the Sphinx and a Muse.^[6][2]
3. An enchanter.^[6][2]

Adjective

1. Tuneful, musical.^[6]

Word family

• τραγῳδός (tragōidós)
• κιθαρῳδός (kitharōidós)

Related words

• ἀείδω (aeídō)
• ἀοιδή (aoidḗ)
• ᾠδή (ōidḗ)
• αὐδή (audḗ)
• ἀηδών (aēdṓn)

Usage notes

Two sayings use the word.^[6] Hesiod's line “καὶ πτωχὸς πτωχῷ φθονέει καὶ ἀοιδὸς ἀοιδῷ” (“beggar envies beggar, and bard envies bard”) describes rivalry between people of the same trade, and Aristotle quotes the proverb “πολλὰ ψεύδονται ἀοιδοί” (“bards tell many lies”).^[6]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Diggle, James, et al., eds. (2021), The Cambridge Greek Lexicon, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
3. ^ a b c d e f Beekes, Robert S. P. (2010), Etymological Dictionary of Greek, with the assistance of Lucien van Beek, Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series 10, Leiden; Boston: Brill
4. ^ a b c d Cunliffe, Richard John (1924), A Lexicon of the Homeric Dialect, London: Blackie and Son
5. ^ Chantraine, Pierre (2009), Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue grecque: histoire des mots, new ed. with a supplement (Chroniques d'étymologie grecque 1–10), Paris: Klincksieck
6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; Jones, Henry Stuart (1940), A Greek-English Lexicon, 9th ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ a b Ινστιτούτο Νεοελληνικών Σπουδών (Ίδρυμα Μανόλη Τριανταφυλλίδη) (1998), Λεξικό της κοινής νεοελληνικής, Thessaloniki: Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
8. ^ a b Babiniotis, Georgios (2010), Ετυμολογικό λεξικό της νέας ελληνικής γλώσσας [Etymological Dictionary of Modern Greek], Athens: Κέντρο Λεξικολογίας
9. ^ a b Keersmaekers, Alek (2021–2025), GLAUx: The Greek Language Automated corpus, https://github.com/alekkeersmaekers/glaux
10. ^ a b c d Rodríguez Adrados, Francisco, et al., eds. (1980–), Diccionario Griego-Español, Madrid: CSIC, http://dge.cchs.csic.es/xdge