Daphnis

Daphnis, legendary Sicilian herdsman, a recurring figure of bucolic (i.e. pastoral) mythology, said to be the originator of bucolic song. His father was sometimes said to be the Greek god Hermes, his mother a nymph who exposed him under a laurel bush (daphne), from which his name is derived. He himself was mortal. He was loved by a nymph to whom he vowed eternal fidelity, but he was made drunk and seduced by a princess. Thereupon the nymph blinded him, and he spent the rest of his life composing mournful songs on his unhappy fate, the supposed origin of bucolic poetry. There are variations on this story, notably in Theocritus where Daphnis appears to die of love. Daphnis epitomizes the musician-shepherd, the ideal inhabitant of the idyllic pastoral world, his life and death powerfully signifying that even in such a world there is no escape from the pangs of unhappy love and death.

Daphnis can also be a genus of hawk moth, and a moon of Saturn

Sculpture of Pan teaching Daphnis to play the pipes; ca. 100 B.C. Found in Pompeii

In Greek mythology, Daphnis (from Ancient Greek: Δάφνις from δάφνη - daphne, "laurel" or "bay-tree") was a son of Hermes and a Sicilian nymph. A shepherd and flutist, he was the inventor of pastoral poetry. A naiad (possibly Echenais or Nomia) fell in love with him, but he was not faithful to her. In revenge, she either blinded him or turned him to stone. Pan also fell in love with him and taught him to play the pan pipes.

Daphnis was also the name of a member of the group of Prophetic sisters, known as the Thriae.

Longus's legend of Daphnis and Chloe describes two children who grow up together and gradually develop mutual love, eventually marrying after many adventures.

External links

• Daphnis Encyclopedia Britannica
• The Death of Daphnis A poem by Theocritus

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