Grammatical and musical concept of "syllable" in Antiquity and its current connotations: a diachronic analysis

Abstract

This article seeks to examine the origin of the term ‘syllable’, which had several nuances in Antiquity and was applied in different fields of expertise, and its connection with such apparently diverse areas as Music and Grammar. For that purpose, we provide a diachronic survey of the concept as it was used in ancient grammars, in some authors and in treatises pertaining to music, and in the most representative grammatical and lexicographic works written in Spanish from varied periods.