melodia

Forms

melōdia f (genitive melōdiae); first declension^[1] A grammarian says the next-to-last syllable is short.^[2] Censorinus has the Greek accusative melodian.^[2]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Ancient Greek μελῳδία (melōidía, “singing, song”), a late borrowing with ⟨ō⟩ for the Greek ⟨ῳ⟩ where older loans such as cōmoedia and tragoedia have ⟨oe⟩.^[1][3] Köbler analyses the Greek word as μέλος (mélos, “limb; song”) and ἀοιδή (aoidḗ, “song”).^[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Among the early authors who use it are Irenaeus' Latin translator, Censorinus and Rufinus;^[2] Augustine writes in the Confessions of the dulces melodias cantilenarum, the sweet melodies of songs.^[2]

Semantic evolution

In the strict sense it was a continuous succession of musical sounds, a melody: Macrobius distinguishes three kinds, enharmonic, diatonic and chromatic.^[2] More loosely it was song or the sound of instruments,^[2] and in Christian writers the singing of the psalms;^[2] the Vulgate says that pipe and psaltery make a sweet melodia.^[2] Figuratively it meant harmony, as in a sermon ascribed to Augustine where all the elements sound together in praise of God.^[2] Martianus Capella and Cassiodorus, who speaks of a melodiae compositor, a composer of melody, are the authors the dictionaries cite.^[3][5][6]

Medieval music theory used it for melody and song, for euphony and harmony, for music in general, for a melismatic chant without text, and in the 15th century for a polyphonic piece in two sections.^[7][8] English melody (about 1300) comes from it, partly through Old French.^[9]

Timeline

• 354–430 AD – Augustine writes of the sweet melodies of songs.^[2][4]
• 390–406 AD – The Vulgate uses it of the music of pipe and psaltery.^[2][4]
• 1st half of the 5th century AD – Macrobius names three kinds of melody.^[2][4]
• 5th century AD – Martianus Capella uses it for song.^[3][5][4]
• c. 485–c. 580 AD – Cassiodorus speaks of a composer of melody.^[3][4]
• 639–709 AD – Aldhelm writes of hymns sung with harmonious melody.^[10][4]
• c. 1300 – English borrows it as melodie.^[9]

Meanings

Noun

1. A melody, a tune; a pleasant song.^[3][2][1]
2. Song, singing; the sound of instruments.^[2][8]
3. (figurative) harmony, concord.^[2][7]
4. (Medieval Latin, music) A melismatic chant without words; in the 15th century, a two-part polyphonic composition.^[7]

Related words

• melos
• English melody

References

1. ^ a b c d e Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Thesaurus linguae Latinae (1900–), Leipzig: Teubner; Berlin: De Gruyter; open-access ed., Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
3. ^ a b c d e Lewis, Charlton T.; Short, Charles (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
4. ^ a b c d e f g Köbler, Gerhard (2010), Lateinisches Abkunfts- und Wirkungswörterbuch für Altertum und Mittelalter, online ed., koeblergerhard.de
5. ^ a b Georges, Karl Ernst (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th ed., ed. Heinrich Georges, Hannover; Leipzig: Hahn
6. ^ Gaffiot, Félix (2016), Dictionnaire latin-français, new ed. by Gérard Gréco et al. (Gaffiot 2016), online ed.
7. ^ a b c Lexicon musicum Latinum medii aevi (1992–), Munich: Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften; online ed. Wörterbuchnetz
8. ^ a b Niermeyer, J. F. (1976), Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus, Leiden: Brill
9. ^ a b Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
10. ^ Latham, R. E., D. R. Howlett, R. K. Ashdowne, et al. (1975–2013), Dictionary of Medieval Latin from British Sources, London: British Academy / Oxford University Press