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Harlequin
Harlequin, young lover of Columbine in the English harlequinade. His name, though not his status, derives from the Arlecchino of the commedia dell'arte, where he was one of the quick-witted, unscrupulous serving-men; and so he remained in Italy. But in France Marivaux turned him into a pretty simpleton, while in the English harlequinade he was first a romantic magician and later a languishing, lackadaisical lover, foppishly dressed in a close-fitting suit of bright silk diamonds (derived from the patches on his original rags), sometimes with lace frill and ruffles. He retained from his origins the small black cat-faced mask, and a lath or bat of thin wood which acted as a magic wand (see TRANSFORMATION SCENE). One of the first English Harlequins was Joseph Haines (?–1701), in Ravenscroft's adaptation of Molière's Les Fourberies de Scapin (1677).
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PHYLLIS HARTNOLL and PETER FOUND. "Harlequin." The Concise Oxford Companion to the Theatre. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. PHYLLIS HARTNOLL and PETER FOUND. "Harlequin." The Concise Oxford Companion to the Theatre. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O79-Harlequin.html PHYLLIS HARTNOLL and PETER FOUND. "Harlequin." The Concise Oxford Companion to the Theatre. 1996. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O79-Harlequin.html |
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Harlequin
Harlequin a mute character in traditional pantomime, typically masked and dressed in a diamond-patterned costume, in the Italian commedia dell' arte the lover of Columbine.
The name (recorded from the 16th century) comes from obsolete French, from earlier Herlequin (or Hellequin), the name of the leader of a legendary troop of demon horsemen; perhaps ultimately related to Old English Herla cyning ‘King Herla’, a mythical figure sometimes identified with Woden. harlequinade the section of a traditional pantomime in which Harlequin played a leading role. It originated in the Italian commedia dell'arte as a sequence of narrative dances, but became a mere epilogue to the presentation of a fairy tale, which eventually displaced it altogether. |
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ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Harlequin." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Harlequin." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-Harlequin.html ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Harlequin." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-Harlequin.html |
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harlequin
har·le·quin / ˈhärlək(w)ən/ • n. 1. (Harlequin) a mute character in traditional pantomime, typically masked and dressed in a diamond-patterned costume. ∎ hist. a stock comic character in Italian commedia dell'arte. 2. (also harlequin duck) a small duck (Histrionicus histrionicus) of fast-flowing streams around the Arctic and North Pacific, the male having mainly gray-blue plumage with bold white markings. • adj. in varied colors; variegated. |
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"harlequin." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "harlequin." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-harlequin.html "harlequin." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-harlequin.html |
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harlequin
harlequin character (associated with Columbine) in It. comedy and Eng. pantomime (clothed in variegated costume, whence the application of the word to animals with variegated coat, plumage, etc.). XVI. — F. †harlequin (mod. arlequin, after It. arlecchino), later var. of Herlequin leader of the Wild Host or troop of demon horsemen riding by night, which has been plausibly referred (as if for *Herlechingi) to OE. Herla cyning king Herla, whose characteristics have been identified with those of Woden.
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T. F. HOAD. "harlequin." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "harlequin." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-harlequin.html T. F. HOAD. "harlequin." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-harlequin.html |
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harlequin
harlequin English name derived from the character Arlecchino of the Commedia dell'arte, who was a quick-witted, unscrupulous serving man. A harlequin nowadays appears in pantomine and comedy as a mute jester, dressed in diamond-patterned, multi-coloured tights.
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"harlequin." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "harlequin." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-harlequin.html "harlequin." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-harlequin.html |
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Harlequin
Harlequin : see commedia dell'arte . |
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"Harlequin." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Harlequin." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-X-Harlequi.html "Harlequin." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-X-Harlequi.html |
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harlequin
harlequin
•Gladwin
•anguine, sanguine
•Alcuin • Darwin • Tarquin
•Cledwyn, Edwin
•penguin
•Delwyn, Selwyn
•sequin • Chindwin • Dilwyn
•harlequin
•Blodwen, Godwin
•Olwen • Baldwin • Alwyn • Goldwyn
•Goodwin • Irwin • Gershwin
•muezzin, resin
•seisin • rosin
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"harlequin." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "harlequin." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-harlequin.html "harlequin." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-harlequin.html |
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