Maldoror
/mal.dɔ.ʁɔʁ/noun
Maldoror is the fictional antihero and title character of the 1869 French prose-poem Les Chants de Maldoror by the writer Lautréamont.
Did you know?Maldoror is a literary coinage by Lautréamont, and although readers often connect its opening mal- with French words for evil or suffering, its complete etymology remains uncertain.
Etymological Timeline
1868–1869
French
Maldoror
“A newly coined proper name created by Lautréamont for the central figure of Les Chants de Maldoror”
1869
French
Les Chants de Maldoror
“The Songs of Maldoror, the published title of Lautréamont’s surreal, transgressive prose-poem”
Late 19th Century
French
Maldoror
“A name associated in literary criticism with blasphemy, violence, rebellion, and radical opposition to conventional morality”
20th Century
French and English
Maldoror
“A recognized literary proper noun used in translations, criticism, art, and popular culture”
Modern English
English
Maldoror
“The title character or work by Lautréamont; the name is generally retained unchanged in English”
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