Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by Thom2503 1476 days ago
Yes, but the Greeks coined the actual phrase.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deus_ex_machina#Origin_of_the_...

"Deus ex machina is a Latin calque from Greek ἀπὸ μηχανῆς θεός (apò mēkhanês theós) 'god from the machine'. The term was coined from the conventions of ancient Greek theater, where actors who were playing gods were brought onto stage using a machine."

1 comments

Ah, thanks. Also, I don't think I ever noticed before that machine and mechanical are related words, both from Doric μαχανά / Greek μηχανή.