La
/lɑː/noun
The sixth note of the solfège scale, corresponding to A in fixed-do notation.
Did you know?The syllable “la” is commonly linked to Guido of Arezzo’s medieval hymn mnemonic, but scholars debate whether it came from “labii” or the final words “Sancte Ioannes.”
Etymological Timeline
11th Century
Medieval Latin
Ut queant laxis
“A hymn to Saint John the Baptist used by Guido of Arezzo to teach singers the pitches of a scale.”
11th Century
Medieval Latin
labii
““Of the lips,” from the hymn phrase “solve polluti labii reatum,” often proposed as the source of the syllable la.”
11th Century
Medieval Latin
Sancte Ioannes
““Saint John,” the closing words of the hymn; another scholarly proposal for the origin of la.”
17th Century
Italian
la
“A solfège syllable used for the sixth degree of the musical scale, replacing the earlier English and Romance usage of sixth-degree forms such as fa.”
Modern English
English
la
“The solfège name for the note A, also used as a sung syllable.”