Philomela

Alternative forms

• Philomel (archaic)

Etymology

From Latin Philomela, from Ancient Greek Φιλομήλη (Philomḗlē), from φίλος (phílos, “love”) +‎ μῆλον (mêlon, “apple; fruit; sheep”), but folk-etymologized since at least Ovid's time as "lover of song".

Proper noun

Philomela

1. A female given name, particularly (mythology) the sister of Procne who is raped and mutilated by her brother-in-law Tereus and supposedly transformed into a bird by the gods.
2. (literary zoology) The nightingale.

Etymology

Borrowed from Ancient Greek Φιλομήλη (Philomḗlē), from φίλος (phílos, “love”) +‎ μῆλον (mêlon, “apple; fruit; sheep”), but folk-etymologized since at least Ovid's time as "lover of song".

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /pʰi.loˈmeː.la/, [pʰɪ.ɫɔˈmeː.ɫa]

Proper noun

Philomēla f (genitive Philomēlae); first declension

1. A female given name, particularly (mythology) the sister of Procne who is raped and mutilated by her brother-in-law Tereus and supposedly transformed into a swallow by the gods.

References

• Phĭlŏmēla in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• Phĭlŏmēla in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire Illustré Latin-Français, Hachette