What is "sticheron"

n. A hymn, often written in cycles and sung in alternation with psalm verses, used in the Orthodox Church and those Eastern Catholic Churches which follow the (w: Byzantine Rite).

A sticheron ( Greek: "set in verses"; plural: stichera; Greek: ) is a hymn of a particular genre that has to be sung during the morning (Orthros) and evening service (Hesperinos) of the Orthodox Church and those Eastern Catholic Churches which follow the Byzantine Rite.

Stichera are usually sung in alternation with or immediately after psalm or other scriptural verses. These verses are known as stichoi (sing: stichos), but sticheraric poetry usually follows the hexameter and is collected in an own book called sticherarion ( Greek: ). A sticherarion is a book containing the stichera for the morning and evening services throughout the year, but chant compositions in the sticheraric melos can also found in other liturgical books like the Octoechos or the Anastasimatarion, or in the Anthology for the Divine Liturgy.