Pygmalion

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /pɪɡˈmeɪliən/

Definitions

1. A narrative centered on a sculptor who becomes enamored with a statue he has fashioned, illustrating the power of love and artistry
2. This tale recounts the journey of an artist whose affection for his own creation leads to a remarkable transformation
3. A legendary sculptor who falls in love with the statue he carved ; a literary or theatrical work focusing on love that induces change or growth

Etymology: In Ovid's "Metamorphoses," a sculptor named Pygmalion carves a woman out of ivory and falls in love with her, and Venus eventually brings the statue to life. The name itself is older than that story. It comes from Phoenician, where "Pumay has given" was a common kind of personal name, combining the god Pumay (Pmy) with a verb meaning "to give." The Greek form Pugmalion carried that name into Classical literature, where it belonged to a Tyrian king in some accounts, and the sculptor in others. The word for the artist-lover came into English through the name itself, and it now serves as a common noun for anyone who shapes another person into something they admire. The Greek myth was retold across Europe for centuries, and George Bernard Shaw's 1913 play, which turned the myth into a comedy about a phonetics professor reshaping a flower girl's speech, is the version that gave the name its modern English currency.