Daffodowndilly - Exploring the name
Becky Woolley
I have always loved daffodils, their cheerfulness is infectious and the sight of them bobbing on a cold but sunny morning is one of my favourite Spring views.
So when I was looking for a name for my business I wanted to try and incorporate daffodils into the name somewhere.
In Shropshire, Daffodils are sometimes called by their old English name - Daffodowndillies.
I loved the sound of the word, its meaning and that it had a connection to where I live and decided to settle on Daffodowndilly as the name.
As well as being famous for the adored Winnie the Pooh, A.A. Milne is also known for his wonderfully evocative poem about daffodils - Daffodowndilly.
She wore her greenest gown;
She turned to the south wind
And curtsied up and down.
She turned to the sunlight
And shook her yellow head,
And whispered to her neighbour
"Winter is dead."
I haven't been able to find much about the word or its history apart from a few literary references but it does seem to have lived on in quite a few counties across the UK according to other Makers I have met so perhaps it lives on much more healthily in spoken memory!
I would love to hear if you have heard the word and if so where you are from, so far people have told me it is still in use in Staffordshire, Shropshire, Kent, Essex and Sussex so please let me know where you have heard it!
Thanks for reading!
Homepage - https://www.daffodowndilly.co.uk/
Hand Drawn Notelet Cards - https://www.daffodowndilly.co.uk/collections/hand-drawn-notelets
Greeting Cards - https://www.daffodowndilly.co.uk/collections/greeting-cards
2 comments
My mother was born in Newfoundland. She used to use this word and I always wondered what or where it was from.
I’ve wondered about Daffodowndillies for years, ever since I read the name in The Secret Garden. At the time, I asked my mum if it was the real name for Daffodils (which made perfect sense to me) but she said she didn’t know. I was driving home from work today and it popped into my head so decided to google it – the answer I got was your post! So, thank you, you’ve answered a years old question for me. I think Daffodowndilly is a much more beautiful name.