The epinikion or epinicion (pl.: epinikia or epinicia, Greek ἐπινίκιον, from epi-, "on", + nikê, "victory") is a genre of occasional poetry also known in English as a victory ode. In ancient Greece, the epinikion most often took the form of a choral lyric, commissioned for and performed at the celebration of an athletic victory in the Panhellenic Games and sometimes in honor of a victory in war.[1] Major poets in the genre are Simonides, Bacchylides, and Pindar.
- ^ Thomas J. Mathiesen, "Epinikion and encomium", in Apollo's lyre: Greek Music and Music Theory in Antiquity and the Middle Ages. University of Nebraska Press, 2000, pp. 135–141 online.