20kWEB: Origin of the word Daffodil, Daffadill. Etymology of the word Daffodil, Daffadill. Etymology Dictionary.

DAFFODIL, a flower of the lily tribe. (F.,—L.,—Gk.) The initial d is no part of the word, but prefixed much in the same way as the t in Ted, for Edward. It is difficult to account for it; it is just possible that it is a contraction from the F. fleur ďaffrodille. At any rate, the M. E. form was affodille. 'Affodylle, herbe, affodillus, albucea;' Prompt. Parv.—O. F. asphodile, more commonly affrodille, 'th' affodill, or asphodill flower;' Cotgrave. Cf. 'aphrodille, the affodill, or asphodill flower;' id. [Here the French has an inserted r, which is no real part of the word, and is a mere corruption. It is clear that the E. word was borrowed from the French before this r was inserted. We have sure proof of this, in the fact that Cotgrave gives, not only the forms asphrodille, asphrodile, and affrodille, but also asphodile (without r). The last of these is the oldest French form of all.]—Lat. asphodelus, borrowed from the Greek.—Gk. ἀσφόδελος, asphodel. See Asphodel. Der. Corrupted forms are daffadilly and daffadowndilly, both used by Spenser, Shep. Kal. April, ll. 60, 140. [†]

ADDENDA

DAFFODIL, DAFFADILL. 'An unexplained var. of Affadyll, affodylle, adaptation of Med. Bot. Latin Affodillus, prob. late Lat. asfodillus,* cl. Lat. Asphodilus, Asphodelus, from Greek. Another med. Lat. corr. was Aphrodillus, whence F. afrodille. Half-a-dozen guesses have been made at the origin of the initial D: as playful variation, like Ted for Edward, Dan (in the north) for Andrew; the northern article ť affodill, the southern article th’ affodill, in Kent de affodill, or, (?) ď affodill (Cotgr. actually has th’affodill); the Dutch bulb-growers de affodil, the F. (presumed) fleur ďafrodille, &c. The F. was least likely, as there was no reason to suppose that the F. afrodille and Eng. affadyll ever came into contact. Some who saw allusion to Aphrodite in Aphrodillus, also saw Daphne in Daffodil; already in 16th cent. Daffadowndilly was given to the shrub Daphne Mezereon, as still in the North. Affadyl was properly Asphodelus; but owing to the epithet Laus tibi being loosely applied both to spec. of Asphodelus and Narcissus, these very different plants were confused in England, and Asphodelus being rare, and Narcissus common, it tended to cling to the latter. Turner, 1551, "I could neuer se thys ryght affodil in England but ones, for the herbe that the people calleth here Affodill or daffodill is a kynd of Narcissus." Botanists finding they could not overthrow the popular application of daffodill, made a distinction. In Lyte, Gerarde, &c., all the Asphodeli are Affodils, and all the Narcissi Daffodils. But the most common Narcissus in Eng. was the "Yellow Daffodill" of our commons, to which as our wild species "Daffodil" has tended to be confined since Shakespeare; "White Daffodill" or "Poet's Lily" is no longer called a daffodil. Daffadilly, daffadowndilly, &c., are all early variants; they show playful variation, and suggest that this had to do with the first appearance of Daffodil itself. At least all early evidence shows it was of purely English rise.' Note by Dr. Murray, in Phil. Soc. Proceedings, Feb. 6, 1880.

Etymology Dictionary

Origin of the word DAFFODIL. Etymology of the word DAFFODIL.