Philomela

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Philomela

Where it comes from

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 Philomel

Greek The sister of Procne who is raped and mutilated by her brother-in-law Tereus and supposedly transformed into a bird by the gods.
literary The nightingale.
A female given name.

Translations

Every language

name sister of Procne

Français	Philomèle

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MLA

"Philomela." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/philomela. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

Philomela. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/philomela

Chicago

"Philomela." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/philomela.

BibTeX

@misc{philomela_2026,
  title = {Philomela},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/philomela},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}