Dafne

Meaning of Dafne

Dafne may travel light on letters, but she’s heavy on heritage. Her roots reach back to ancient Greece, where “daphne” meant “laurel,” the evergreen crown of champions and poets—and, in myth, the tree a swift-footed nymph became to dodge Apollo’s ardent chase. Through the centuries the name sailed south, trading its second “p” for Italian and Spanish ease, yet keeping every ounce of its leafy charm. In the United States she’s a quiet climber, sprouting from just a handful of births in the early ’90s to a cozy spot in the mid-600s today—proof that sometimes the tortoise, not the hare, wins the naming race. Parents drawn to Dafne often love her mix of classical polish and modern snap: she feels both timeless and breezy, like a laurel wreath worn with sneakers. For a little girl destined to dart between tree-climbing adventures and podium-worthy moments, Dafne fits like sunlight through leaves—warm, bright, and always reaching upward.