Daphne

Daphne (or Dafne) is a feminine given name of Greek origin meaning laurel. It originates from Greek mythology, where Daphne (Greek: Δάφνη) was a naiad – a variety of female nymph associated with fountains, springs, streams, and other bodies of freshwater – who was turned into a laurel tree to save her from Apollo's advances.

The name came into popular use in the Anglosphere in the late 19th century along with other flower, tree, and plant names that were in vogue at the time. In the United States, the name was in use for enslaved African-born women named by their enslavers, who used names from the ancient Greek and Roman classics for the enslaved population in order to display their education to their contemporaries. United States census records from the 19th century show a majority of the women bearing the name in the antebellum era were Black Americans. The name was also in rare use in the United Kingdom in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, where a working class mother and daughter in Scotland were both named Daphne. The name became fashionable for daughters born to aristocratic families in Britain in the late 19th century and early 20th century. The name increased in use in the Anglosphere after author Daphne du Maurier rose to prominence in the 1940s and 1950s. Usage also increased after the name was used for characters in novels or television productions such as the popular 1960s American television series Surfside 6 in which Diane McBain played socialite Daphne Dutton, who had her own yacht called the Daffy II. After the show first aired, the name Daphne tripled in use for newborn American girls between 1960 and 1962. In recent years, the name has increased in usage due to the aristocratic character Daphne Bridgerton on the 2020s Netflix streaming television series Bridgerton.

Daphne has been among the one thousand most used names for girls in the United States most years since 1889. It has also been popular in recent years in the United Kingdom, Quebec, Canada, France, and the Netherlands.

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