

The word first entered the English language by way of a borrowing of Latin phoenīx into Old English ( fenix). The modern English word phoenix entered the English language from Latin, later reinforced by French.

Some scholars have claimed that the poem De ave phoenice may present the mythological phoenix motif as a symbol of Christ's resurrection. Over time, extending beyond its origins, the phoenix could variously "symbolize renewal in general as well as the sun, time, the Empire, metempsychosis, consecration, resurrection, life in the heavenly Paradise, Christ, Mary, virginity, the exceptional man, and certain aspects of Christian life". Over time the phoenix motif spread and gained a variety of new associations Herodotus, Lucan, Pliny the Elder, Pope Clement I, Lactantius, Ovid, and Isidore of Seville are among those who have contributed to the retelling and transmission of the phoenix motif. The origin of the phoenix has been attributed to Ancient Egypt by Herodotus and later 19th-century scholars, but other scholars think the Egyptian texts may have been influenced by classical folklore. In the Motif-Index of Folk-Literature, a tool used by folklorists, the phoenix is classified as motif B32. Some legends say it dies in a show of flames and combustion, others that it simply dies and decomposes before being born again.

Associated with the sun, a phoenix obtains new life by arising from the ashes of its predecessor. The phoenix is an immortal bird associated with Greek mythology (with analogs in many cultures) that cyclically regenerates or is otherwise born again. A depiction of a phoenix by Friedrich Justin Bertuch, 1806)
