Gigue
/ʒiːɡ/noun
A lively dance in triple time, or a musical movement modeled on that dance.
Did you know?Gigue entered English through French, and its deeper ancestry is tied to the same old Germanic word-family that gave English words for dancing and jesting—proof that rhythm and play were once linguistically inseparable.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*gīg-/*gīgō-
“A lively movement or dance-related notion, probably imitative in origin”
Old French
OF
gigue
“A dance or fiddle-like musical form; also a kind of leg or ham”
14th–15th Century
French
gigue
“A lively dance, later especially a fast triple-time dance”
17th Century
English
gigue
“A fast dance movement, especially in Baroque suites”
Modern English
English
gigue
“A lively dance or a musical movement in the style of such a dance”