Meanings
- uncountableentertainmentA genre of music in which modern songs are covered in a medieval or ancient style, often involving the lyrics being adapted or translated into historically accurate language.First known use 2020
The instruments he uses for the bardcore covers are downloaded from virtual sound libraries - a variety of lutes and harps, as well as the crumhorn, a curved wind instrument, and the psaltery, a kind of plucked zither.
2021 February 27, Olivia Ho, “Shakira, but make it mediaeval: Bardcore takes today's music back in time”, in The Straits Times, archived from the original on 14 Aug 20222 more examples
There's a Bardcore cover for every occasion: The Weekend's "Blinding Lights" for the after-banquet, Sia's "Chandelier" for when thine eyes doth begin to weep, Linkin Park's "Numb" for when the mood continues to spiral, and a cover of "I'm Blue (da ba dee)" by Eiffel 65 for those yearning for a simpler time.
2020 June 23, Elmira Tanatarova, “Exploring Bardcore: YouTube's obsession with medieval covers of Lady Gaga”, in i-D, archived from the original on 06 Nov 2022Sure, bardcore's usage of modern melodies may not align with what scholars know about medieval melodies (written in an entirely different mode) and the insertion of faux-medieval phrases like taking out all the "you"s and using "thou" alongside contemporary lyrics may not be entirely accurate. But bardcore's reinvention of medieval music isn't all that different from what's framed as historically accurate medieval music today.
2020 August 5, Hazel Cills, “How Historically Accurate Is Bardcore Anyway?”, in Jezebel, archived from the original on 25 Dec 2022Synonyms: tavernwave
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA genre of music in which modern songs are covered in a medieval or ancient style, often involving the lyrics being adapted or translated into historically accurate language.
Origin
From bard + -core (“denoting a genre of music”).
Full word history & related roots →Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
bardcore. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bardcore
“bardcore.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bardcore. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “bardcore,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bardcore.
Source: bardcore on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.