A musical composition inspired by or evocative of the night; a painting of a night scene.
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Latin19th centurywell-attested
From French 'nocturne' (of the night, nocturnal), from Latin 'nocturnus' (belonging to the night, occurring at night), derived from 'nox' (genitive 'noctis,' night), from PIE *nókʷts (night). The PIE form is one of the most widely attested roots in the language family: Greek 'nyx/nyktos' (night), Sanskrit 'naktam' (at night), Gothic 'nahts' (night), Old English 'neaht/niht' (night — modern English 'night'). As a musical genre, the nocturne waspioneered by Irish composer
Did you know?
James McNeill Whistlerborrowed the term 'nocturne' from music to describe his moody night paintings. When the critic John Ruskin accused him of 'flinging a pot of paint in the public's face,' Whistler sued for libel — and won, though the jury awarded him only a farthing in damages.
'nocturn' (a canonical hour prayed at night). The root is stable across Indo-European and one of the oldest confirmed common lexical items. Key roots: nox (noctis) (Latin: "night"), *nókʷts (Proto-Indo-European: "night").