Comedy

means a village-song (Greek, komē-õdē), referring to the village merry-makings, in which comic songs still take a conspicuous place. The Greeks had certain festal processions of great licentiousness, held in honour of Dionyʹsos, in the suburbs of their cities, and termed koʹmoi or village-revels. On these occasions an ode was generally sung, and this ode was the foundation of Greek comedy. (See Tragedy.)