EPINICION

also spelled Epinikion, plural Epinicia, or Epinikia, choral lyric ode honouring a victor in the great Hellenic games, performed as part of the celebration on his triumphal return to his city. The epinicion had a basis in improvised celebration, but the form as it has survived is highly literary. One of the earliest examples extant is that of Simonides of Ceos, an ode for an Olympic victory in 520 BC. Though the epinicion's structure is not fixed, there is a certain uniformity in content and arrangement. The occasion demands a reference to the victor and the nature and place of his victory; to this may be added reference to victories of members of his family or a compliment to his trainer. Generally there is a myth, more or less elaborate and relevant to the occasion. There is also a gnomic element of wise sayings and reflections on life. The epinicion ode did not use traditional lines or stanzas, but the metre was formed afresh for each poem and was never used again in exactly the same form. The strophes, or stanzas, either single or in systems of three, were repeated through the poem, and often their form was related to the accompanying dance. Its performance required a trained choir and musicians skilled in the lute and the lyre. The form reached its zenith in the odes of Pindar (518 or 522 to after 446 BC). Those of his younger contemporary, Bacchylides, signaled the end of its popularity. See also ode.