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Daphne, in Greek mythology, the personification of the laurel (Greek daphnē), a tree whose
leaves, formed into garlands, were particularly associated with Apollo (q.v.). Traditionally, the
special position of the laurel was connected with Apollo’s love for Daphne, the beautiful
daughter of a river god (probably Ladon) who lived a pastoral existence in either Thessaly, the
Peloponnese, or Syria. She rejected every lover, including Apollo. When the god pursued her,
Daphne prayed to the Earth or to her father to rescue her, whereupon she was transformed into
a laurel. Apollo appropriated the laurel for poets and, in Rome, for triumphs. Daphne was also
loved by Leucippus, who was killed because of Apollo’s jealousy.
Full name: Daphne Peneia

Apollo and Daphne

In Greek Mythology, APOLLO was the God of Light, and it was his job to pull the sun across the sky
in his 4-horse chariot every day. He has also been referred to as the God of music, poetry, art,
medicine, knowledge, plague and archery.

Apollo was the son of ZEUS (the God of Thunder) and Leto. He had a twin sister, ARTEMIS, who was
the Goddess of Hunting.

Apollo was also famous for being an oracular god, and had two cults in Delphi and Delos. People
would come from all over the world to learn from Apollo what their future held. It was believed
that, as the God of both medicine and plague, Apollo could heal people as well as cause disease by
shooting people with his arrows.

Daphne was a Naiad Nymph in Greek Mythology, and was the daughter of a river god. She was
famous for being incredibly beautiful and for catching the eye of Apollo. However, Daphne was
determined to remain unmarried and untouched by a man by the rest of her life.

Greek Mythology states that Apollo had been mocking the God of Love, Eros (also known as
Cupid). In retaliation, Eros fired two arrows: a gold arrow that struck Apollo and made him fall in
love with Daphne, and a lead arrow that made Daphne hate Apollo. Under the spell of the arrow,
Apollo continued to follow Daphne, but she continued to reject him. Apollo told Daphne that he
would love her forever.

Daphne turned to the river god, Peneus, and pleaded for him to free her from Apollo. In response,
Peneus use metamorphosis to turn Daphne into a laurel tree. Apollo used his powers of eternal
youth and immortality to make Daphne’s laurel leaves evergreen. It’s believed that Daphne has to
sacrifice her body and turn into a tree as this was the only way she could avoid Apollo’s sexual
advances.
Further Facts About Apollo and Daphne:
 After Daphne had been transformed into a Laurel, Apollo made the plant sacred and vowed
to wear it as clothing.
 Eros fired the two arrows into Apollo and Daphne because Apollo had been making fun of
him. Apollo had recently been victorious and won Python, an earth dragon, and told Eros
that his godly talents were useless compared to his own.
 Eros fired the arrows from the top of Mount Parnassus.
 In the Greek language, the word for ‘Laurel’ is ‘Daphne’.
 The Laurel became the symbol of Apollo and the symbol of poetry.
 Every 4 years, a Laurel wreath would be given to winner of the Pythian Games. These Games
were held in honour of Apollo.

Link will appear as APOLLO AND DAPHNE: HTTPS://GREEKGODSANDGODDESSES.NET - Greek

Gods & Goddesses, November 30, 2016

Daphne

According to Greek myth, Apollo chased the nymph Daphne (Greek: Δάφνη, meaning "laurel"), daughter
of Peneios and Creusa in Thessaly. The god's infatuation was caused by an arrow from Eros, who wanted
to make Apollo pay for making fun of his archery skills and to demonstrate the power of love's arrow.
Daphne prays for help either to the river god Peneus or to Gaea, and was transformed into a laurel (Laurus
nobilis). The laurel became sacred to Apollo, and crowned the victors at the Pythian Games.
Unrequited Pursuit
According to Greek myth, Apollo chased the nymph Daphne, daughter either
of Peneus and Creusa in Thessaly, or of the river Ladon in Arcadia. The pursuit of a local nymph by
an Olympian god, part of the archaic adjustment of religious cult in Greece, was given an arch anecdotal
turn in Ovid's Metamorphoses, where the god's infatuation was caused by an arrow from Eros, who
wanted to make Apollo pay for making fun of his archery skills and to demonstrate the power of love's
arrow. Ovid treats the encounter, Apollo's lapse of majesty, in the mode of elegiac lovers, and expands the
pursuit into a series of speeches. According to the rendering Daphne prays for help either to the river
god Peneus or to Gaia, and is transformed into a laurel: "a heavy numbness seized her limbs, thin bark
closed over her breasts, her hair turned into leaves, her arms into branches, her feet so swift a moment ago
stuck fast in slow-growing roots, her face was lost in the canopy. Only her shining beauty was left." The
laurel became sacred to Apollo, and crowned the victors at the Pythian Games.

Parents

Either Ladon (river god) or Peneios (river god) and Unknown Mother (cruesa) , Amyclas
Consort

Apollo (pursued her to no avail)

https://greekmythology.wikia.org/wiki/Daphne

DAPHNE was a Naiad-nymph of the river Ladon of Arkadia or the Peneios (Peneus) in Thessalia.
She was loved by the god Apollon who pursued her until she grew exhausted and cried out to
Gaia (Gaea) for help. The goddess transformed into a laurel tree which Apollon then adopted as
his sacred plant. In a festival at Delphoi (Delphi), a branch of a sacred laurel tree was brought to
the shrine from the Thessalian vale of Tempe. This rite would suggest that the Thessalian version
of the Daphne myth was the oldest. The Delphians also had a closely related myth about a
certain Daphnis who they describe as the Oreiad-nymph prophetess of Gaia at the shrine before
Apollon assumed control. DAPHNE was a Naiad-nymph of the river Ladon of Arkadia or the
Peneios (Peneus) in Thessalia. She was loved by the god Apollon who pursued her until she grew
exhausted and cried out to Gaia (Gaea) for help. The goddess transformed into a laurel tree
which Apollon then adopted as his sacred plant. In a festival at Delphoi (Delphi), a branch of a
sacred laurel tree was brought to the shrine from the Thessalian vale of Tempe. This rite would
suggest that the Thessalian version of the Daphne myth was the oldest. The Delphians also had
a closely related myth about a certain Daphnis who they describe as the Oreiad-nymph
prophetess of Gaia at the shrine before Apollon assumed control.DAPHNE was a Naiad-nymph
of the river Ladon of Arkadia or the Peneios (Peneus) in Thessalia. She was loved by the god
Apollon who pursued her until she grew exhausted and cried out to Gaia (Gaea) for help. The
goddess transformed into a laurel tree which Apollon then adopted as his sacred plant. In a
festival at Delphoi (Delphi), a branch of a sacred laurel tree was brought to the shrine from the
Thessalian vale of Tempe. This rite would suggest that the Thessalian version of the Daphne
myth was the oldest. The Delphians also had a closely related myth about a certain Daphnis who
they describe as the Oreiad-nymph prophetess of Gaia at the shrine before Apollon assumed
control.

she was an Oreas and an ancient priestess of the Delphic oracle to which she had been
appointed by Ge. Diodorus (iv. 66) describes her as the daughter of Teiresias, who is better
known by the name of Manto. She was made prisoner in the war of the Epigoni and given as a
present to Apollo. A third Daphne is called a daughter of the rivergod Ladon in Arcadia