Etymology: < (i) Middle French satire, satyre (French satire, †satyre) poem in which prevailing immorality or foolishness is ridiculed or denounced (1355 in a translation of Livy; the specific senses ‘satirical writing’ and ‘mockery’ are not paralleled until later than in English: 1663 and 1690 respectively), or its etymon (ii) classical Latin satira, variant of satura literary composition consisting of a miscellany of prose and verse on various topics (Quintilian, Aulus Gellius), poem in which prevailing immorality or foolishness is ridiculed or denounced, of uncertain origin. Compare Spanish sátira (1417), Italian satira (a1308); also German Satire (1540).Classical Latin satura is probably a specific application of satura medley. According to the grammarians satura is short for lanx satura (literally ‘full dish’; < lanx dish (see launce n.¹) + satura , feminine of satur full: see saturate v.), which is alleged to have been used for a dish containing various kinds of fruit, and for food composed of many different ingredients. It has also been suggested that classical Latin satura denoting a literary composition is a different word, possibly of Etruscan origin, and that the association with satura ‘medley’ reflects popular etymology. The word was formerly often associated in English with satyr n., from the common view (found already in some ancient grammarians) that classical Latin satira was derived from ancient Greek σάτυρος satyr n., in allusion to the chorus of satyrs which gave its name to the Greek ‘satyric’ drama. This association is reflected by the α. forms; it is likewise found in French, where the spelling †satyre is common until the mid 18th cent., and was the headword form in the French Academy dictionary until its 1740 edition. Sense 4, which is not paralleled in Latin or any of the Romance languages, shows a specific use probably resulting from association with satyr n.

Etymology: < satire n.