The history of the Ukrainian musical terminology formation is a part of the entire lexical language system development. This process vividly illustrates the connection of the lexical language system formation to the history of the material and spiritual culture of Ukrainian people.
During ХІ–ХV centuries the ground for the formation and improvement of the Ukrainian musical terminological system was created. The names of the musical instruments, genres and certain musical works appear on the basis of the Ukrainian language; the church and musical names are formed on the basis of the Greek language.
The formation of the scientific musical terminology started in the ХVІ–ХVІІІ centuries, when the European music was influencing the development of the musical culture in Ukraine. The basis of the modern music – the linear system of the musical sounds recording – was borrowed from Europe.
The Ostroh cultural and educational centre (1580–1608); the brethren schools appearing in the XVІ-ХVІІ centuries in Lviv, Vilno, Berest, Rohatyn, Peremyshl, Lutsk, Kremenets and other cities; the Kyiv cultural and educational centre (the Brethren school - since 1615, the Kyiv-Mohyla Collegium – since 1632, the Kyiv-Mohyla Academy – since 1701) played an important role in promoting the musical literacy and professionalism.
The Ukrainian musical lexical units are represented in the lexicographic works of that time: “Lexicon slovenoros’ky” by Pamva Berynda (1627), “Lexis” by Lavrentiy Zyzaniya (1596), “Latin lexicon” by Ye. Slavynetsky (1650) and “Slavo-Latin lexicon” by Ye. Slavynetsky and A. Koretsky-Satanovsky.
The Lviv manuscript of the “Musical grammar” by Mykola Dyletsky is the most prominent sample of the scientific musical literature of the ХVІІ century Ukrainian language representing the musical terminological vocabulary, namely: the names of the musical instruments (instrumenty hralny): skrypytsa (violin), truba (trumpet); names of the music performers and professionals: hratelnyk (player), dudyhaydy (dilettante composer), kompozytor (composer), organista (organ player); names of the singers voices: alt (alto), bas (bass), tenor (tenor); the names of the musical collectives: kapeliya (large choir), khor (choir); names of actions, working processes in the sphere of music: voshozhdeniye (ascension), ihrannya (playing), komponovannya (composing), nyshozhdeniye (degression), spivannya (singing); the names of types, music genres, certain musical works and their constituent parts: kadentsiya (cadence), kontsert (concert), lyament (lament), tren, pisen’ka (song), sarabanda (saraband); names of notation in music: bemol (flat), diyezys (sharp), es, chvertka (quarter); names denoting intervals and accords: kvarta (fourth), kvinta (fifth), oktava (octave); names of stops and tonalities: muzyka duralnaya (duration music), bemolyarnaya (flat music), diyezysovaya (sharp music), mishanaya (mixed music), muzyka veseloho tonu (music of the merry tone); the names of the metric and rhythmic notions: proportsiya (proportion), poltakt (half time), takt (time); names of the melody decorations: mordent, trel (trill).
Thus, the Ukrainian terminological lexical system of the ХVІ–ХVІІІ centuries confirmed the cultural and musical evolution of Ukrainians in the direction of professionalism. The Ukrainian scientific musical terminology having its grounds in the national sources started to form. The fruitful idea of combining the own ideas and the borrowed from other languages ones lies in the basis of the scientific musical terminology creation. The church and musical terminology formed in the ХІ–XV centuries has in its basis either the Greek language or the translations into the Old Church Slavonic, and the modern scientific musical terminology started its formation in the XVI–XVIII centuries and is based on the national ground and the borrowings from Latin, Italian and other European languages.