Daphne
Daphne comes from the Greek "daphnē," meaning laurel tree. In Greek mythology, Daphne was a naiad (water nymph) pursued by Apollo. To escape him, she prayed to her father, the river god Peneus, who transformed her into a laurel tree. Apollo, heartbroken, made the laurel his sacred tree — hence the laurel wreath that crowned victors in ancient Greece. Daphne has been in the US top 1000 most years since 1880, with a small peak in the 1960s and a larger revival in the 2010s. The most visible modern bearer is Daphne du Maurier (1907-1989), the British author of "Rebecca" (1938) — one of the most influential gothic novels of the 20th century. Daphne (in Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!, 1969 onwards) gave the name a pop-culture dimension. I find Daphne has a slightly old-world, classical quality — the "ph" gives it a Greek texture, and the two syllables are clean. The myth of transformation — pursued woman becomes a tree — has been read as a story about bodily autonomy and the cost of escape. The name carries that depth beneath its cheerful sound. Daphne is a female name of Greek origin that means "Laurel tree". Classical, graceful, and quietly resilient. The name sounds mythological. Daphnes tend to be artistic. US top 400 since 2010s. Well-known people named Daphne include Daphne du Maurier (author), Daphne (Greek myth), Daphne (Scooby-Doo character), Daphne Rubin-Vega (actress). Common variations and related forms of Daphne include Dafne (Italian), Daphné (French), Dafna (Hebrew), Daph (short form).