Helicon
/ˈhɛlɪkən/noun
A mountain in Boeotia, Greece, traditionally associated with the Muses and poetic inspiration.
Did you know?In Greek mythology, Mount Helicon was sacred to the Muses, and its spring Hippocrene was said to have burst forth when Pegasus struck the ground with his hoof.
Etymological Timeline
Pre-Greek
Unknown
*Helikōn
“A probable pre-Greek place-name; its original meaning is uncertain.”
Ancient Greek
Greek
Ἑλικών (Helikōn)
“The name of a mountain in Boeotia, Greece.”
Classical Greece
Greek
Ἑλικωνιάδες (Helikōniades)
“The Heliconian Muses, goddesses associated with poetry, music, and the arts.”
1st Century BCE–1st Century CE
Latin
Helicon
“Mount Helicon, represented in Roman literary tradition as a home of poetic inspiration.”
16th Century
English
Helicon
“A poetic name for Mount Helicon and, by extension, a source or realm of poetic inspiration.”
Modern English
English
Helicon
“A proper noun referring chiefly to the Greek mountain, its mythology, or artistic inspiration associated with it.”
Explore more surprising origins