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prothalamion

[proh-thuh-ley-mee-on, -uh n]
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noun, plural pro·tha·la·mi·a [proh-thuh-ley-mee-uh] /ˌproʊ θəˈleɪ mi ə/.
  1. a song or poem written to celebrate a marriage.

Origin of prothalamion

1597; pro-2 + (epi)thalamion; coined by Edmund Spenser
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for prothalamion

Historical Examples

  • The Prothalamion contains a final record of his disappointments in England.

    Spenser

    R. W. Church

  • It is a bridal ode (Prothalamion), to celebrate the marriage of two daughters of the Earl of Worcester, written late in 1596.

    Spenser

    R. W. Church

  • Among the minor poems of Spenser the most delightful were his Prothalamion and Epithalamion.

British Dictionary definitions for prothalamion

prothalamion

prothalamium

noun plural -mia (-mɪə)
  1. a song or poem in celebration of a marriage

Word Origin

C16: from Greek pro- before + thalamos marriage; coined by Edmund Spenser, on the model of epithalamion
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for prothalamion

n.

"song sung before a wedding," 1590s, coined as a poem title by Edmund Spenser (based on epithalamion) from Greek pro- "before" (see pro-) + thalamos "bridal chamber" (see thalamus). Sometimes Latinized as prothalamium.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper