Etymograph

English

rhapsode

Rhapsode comes from Ancient Greek ῥαψῳδός ‘rhapsodist’.

  1. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEῥαψῳδός1‘rhapsodist’
  2. Englishearliest quotation 1892rhapsode1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English rhapsode
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1892, Plato: “Socrates: And do the Epidaurians have contests of rhapsodes…”.

Lineage

  1. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEῥαψῳδόςWiktionary, English rhapsode‘rhapsodist’
  2. Englishearliest quotation 1892rhapsodeWiktionary, English rhapsode. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1892, Plato: “Socrates: And do the Epidaurians have contests of rhapsodes…”

Every English word from Ancient Greek ῥαψῳδός

Today it means

noun One who performs the poetry of a poet for an audience; not necessarily a writer of poetry.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “rhapsode”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Ancient Greek ῥαψῳδός / rhapsode

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