The kontakion (Greek , plural , kontakia) is a form of hymn performed in the Orthodox and the Eastern Catholic liturgical traditions. The kontakion originated in the Byzantine Empire around the 6th century and is closely associated with Saint Romanos the Melodist (d. 556). It is divided into strophes (oikoi, stanzas) and begins with a prologue (the prooimoion or koukoulion). A kontakion usually has a biblical theme, and often features dialogue between biblical characters. The only kontakion that is regularly celebrated in full length today is the Akathist to the Theotokos. Etymology The word kontakion derives from the Greek κόνταξ (kontax), which means "rod" or "stick" and refers specifically to the pole around which a scroll is wound. While the genre dates to at least the 6th century, the word itself is attested only in the 9th century. The motivation for the name is likely "the way in which the words on a scroll unfurl as it is read". A hymn book containing kontakia is called kontakarion () (loaned into Slavonic as kondakar, ). The kontakarion is not just a collection of kontakia: within the tradition of the Cathedral Rite (like the rite practiced at the Hagia Sophia of Constantinople) it became the name of the book of the prechanter or lampadarios, also known as psaltikon, which contained all the soloistic parts of hymns sung during the morning service and the Divine Liturgy. Because the kontakia were usually sung by protopsaltes during the morning services, the first part for the morning service with its prokeimena and kontakia was the most voluminous part, so it was simply called kontakarion. History Originally the kontakion was a Syriac form of poetry, which became popular in Constantinople under Romanos the Melodist, Anastasios and Kyriakos during the 6th century and was continued by Sergius I of Constantinople and Sophronius of Jerusalem during the 7th century. Romanos' works had been widely acknowledged as a crucial contribution to Byzantine hymnography, in some kontakia he also supported Emperor Justinian by writing state propaganda. Romanos' kontakion On the Nativity of Christ was also mentioned in his vita. Until the twelfth century, it was sung every year at the imperial banquet on that feast by the joint choirs of Hagia Sophia and of the Church of the Holy Apostles in Constantinople. Most of the poem takes the form of a dialogue between the Mother of God and the Magi. A