ɪts pˌɑːpjʊlɚɹᵻzˈeɪʃən ɪz wˈaɪdli ɐtɹˈɪbjuːɾᵻd tə ðə wˈɜːk ðə bˈɜːθ ʌv tɹˈædʒədi baɪ fɹˈiːdɹɪtʃ nˈiːtʃə, ðˌoʊ ðə tˈɜːmz hæd ɔːlɹˌɛdi bˌɪn ɪn jˈuːs pɹˈaɪɚ tə ðˈɪs, sˈʌtʃ ɐz ɪnðə ɹˈaɪɾɪŋz ʌv pˈoʊɪt fɹˈiːdɹɪtʃ hˈɜːldɚlˌɪn, hɪstˈoːɹiən jˈoʊhɑːn dʒˈoʊəkˌɪm wˈɪŋkɛlmən, ænd ˈʌðɚz.
Its popularization is widely attributed to the work The Birth of Tragedy by Friedrich Nietzsche, though the terms had already been in use prior to this, such as in the writings of poet Friedrich Hölderlin, historian Johann Joachim Winckelmann, and others.