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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Alalch E. (talk | contribs) at 00:54, 9 January 2025 (this being an article about the term "melee", considering that it covers the meaning, etymology, and the origins of the term, it is fairly complete). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

A melee (/ˈmeɪleɪ/ or /ˈmɛleɪ/) is a confused hand-to-hand fight among several people. The English term melee originated circa 1648 from the French word mêlée (French: [mɛle]), derived from the Old French mesler, from which medley and meddle were also derived.

The 1812 tabletop wargame Kriegsspiel, and H.G. Wells' 1913 Little Wars, referred to the hand-combat stage of the game as a melée, or mêlée, respectively. The term was brought over to tabletop role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons, and in turn to role-playing video games, to describe any close-combat encounter.

See also

• Combatives
• Tournament (medieval) § Melee

References

1. "Definition of melee". Merriam-Webster. Archived from the original on 2 March 2021. Retrieved 10 June 2017.
2. W. R. Livermore (1882). The American Kriegsspiel (PDF). Riverside Press, Cambridge. p. 105. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2020-06-04. Retrieved 2019-08-14. The first point to be considered is the number of combatants on either side and the relative advantages under which they are fighting; the second the losses and duration of the melee
3. H.G. Wells (1913). Little Wars. Frank Palmer Publishing. We did at last contrive to do so ; we invented what we call the melee, and our revised rules in the event of a melee will be found set out upon a later page
4. Michael J. Tresca (November 10, 2010). The Evolution of Fantasy Role-Playing Games. McFarland. ISBN 9780786460090. Archived from the original on March 27, 2023. Retrieved October 27, 2020.

• Combat
• Military science