Dictionary:

Daphne

  (dăf'nē)

A nymph who metamorphosed into a laurel tree as a means of escaping from Apollo.

Opera in one act by Richard Strauss to a libretto by Gregor (1938, Dresden).

For more information on Daphne, visit Britannica.com.

Daphnē (‘laurel’), in Greek myth, a nymph, daughter of a river-god (generally Ladon in Arcadia but also represented as Pēnēus in Thessaly). She was a huntress and wanted no lovers, but was pursued by Leucippus who joined her hunting companions disguised as a girl. When Daphne and her companions bathed after the hunt Leucippus was found out and killed. She also rejected the love of the god Apollo and fled from him, praying to the river-god Peneus for deliverance; she was thereupon changed into a laurel tree.

A genus of plants in the family Thymelaceae; contain dihydroxycoumarin glycosides, e.g. daphnetin; these are very toxic and cause severe irritation to the gut, leading to severe enteritis, vomiting and diarrhea. Includes D. cneorum, D. genka, D. laureola, D. mezereum. Called also spurge laurel, mezereon, garland flower, wood or copse laurel, wild pepper, spurge olive.

This article is about the Greek mythological character. For other uses, see Daphne (disambiguation).

Daphne - From the painting by Deverial.

According to Greek myth, Apollo chased the nymph Daphne (Greek: Δάφνη, meaning "laurel"), daughter either of Peneus and Creusa, or of Ladon. His infatuation was caused by an arrow from Eros, who was jealous because Apollo had made fun of his archery skills. Eros also claimed to be irritated by Apollo's singing. Daphne prayed to the river god Peneus to help her and he transformed her into a laurel tree (Laurus nobilis), which became sacred to Apollo. See Ovid. Metamorphoses. Book I: 452-567, and Apollo and Daphne.

See also

• Shapeshifting
• Eglė the Queen of Serpents
• Dafne, an opera by Jacopo Peri

External links

• Apollo and Daphne - statue by Gian Lorenzo Bernini

Daphne chased by Apollo by Tiepolo.

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Daphne

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