PAEAN

solemn choral lyric of invocation, joy, or triumph, originating in ancient Greece where it was addressed to Apollo in his guise as Paean, physician to the gods. Paeans were sung at banquets following the boisterous dithyrambs, at the festivals of Apollo, and at public funerals. It was the custom for them to be sung by an army on the march and before going into battle, when a fleet left the harbour, and after a victory. Paeans were later addressed to other gods as well as to men like the 5th-century-BC Spartan commander Lysander, who were more or less deified for their achievements.