Euphues: The Anatomy of Wit

Euphues: The Anatomy of Wit /ˈjuːfjuːiːz/, a didactic romance written by John Lyly, was entered in the Stationers' Register 2 December 1578 and published that same year.

The name Euphues is derived from Greek ευφυής (euphuēs) meaning "graceful, witty."

Lyly adopted the name from Roger Ascham's The Scholemaster, which describes Euphues as a type of student who is "apte by goodness of witte, and appliable by readiness of will, to learning, hauving all other qualities of the mind and parts of the body, that must an other day serue learning, not troubled, mangled, and halfed, but sound, whole, full & able to do their office" (194).

Lyly's mannered style is characterized by parallel arrangements and periphrases.

The proverb "All is fair in love and war" has been attributed to Lyly's Euphues.