bel canto

"beautiful woman well-dressed; reigning beauty," 1620s, from French belle, from Old French bele, from Latin bella, fem. of bellus "beautiful, fair," from PIE *dwenelo-, diminutive form of root *deu- (2) "to do, perform; show favor, revere." "The dim. meaning is the reason why bellus was originally used to refer to women and children; it was applied to men only ironically" [de Vaan].

late 14c., "sing," from Old French chanter "to sing, celebrate" (12c.), from Latin cantare "to sing," originally a frequentative of canere "sing" (which it replaced), from PIE root *kan- "to sing."

The frequentative quality of the word was no longer felt in Latin, and by the time French emerged the word had entirely displaced canere. The meaning "sing as in the church service, in a style between song and recitation" is by 1580s. Related: Chanted; chanting.