What does dauphine mean?
A dauphine was the wife of the dauphin — the eldest son of the reigning king of France and heir apparent to the throne. The title, used during the ancien régime, made its bearer the crown princess of France, though she held the rank only through marriage rather than birthright. The most famous example is Marie Antoinette, who became dauphine in 1770 when she married the future Louis XVI, five years before he acceded to the throne. The word is feminine in form and always refers to a woman connected to the French succession; the male counterpart is dauphin. Today 'dauphine' survives almost exclusively in historical writing about the French monarchy, lending an air of courtly elegance wherever it appears. A separate culinary use exists in the phrase 'potatoes dauphine', denoting crisp fried potato puffs enriched with choux pastry, a classic of French cuisine.
nounThe wife of a dauphin, the eldest son of the king of France and heir apparent to the throne; by extension, the title borne by the crown princess of France before the Revolution.
- The wife of the dauphin of France; the title of the French crown princess under the ancien régime.
"Marie Antoinette became dauphine of France upon her marriage to the future Louis XVI in 1770."
"As dauphine, she was expected to preside over the glittering salons of Versailles."
"The young dauphine struggled to adapt to the rigid etiquette of the French court."
Rarely needed in practice, as there was normally only one dauphine at a time; the plural appears mainly in general historical discussion.
"Over the centuries, several dauphines never lived to see their husbands take the throne."
When Marie Antoinette arrived in Versailles as dauphine, she was just fourteen years old — a teenage Austrian bride one step from the throne that would later cost her her head.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of dauphine
Dauphine is borrowed directly from French, where it is simply the feminine form of dauphin, the title given to the heir apparent of France. That title traces back to the counts of Vienne in the Dauphiné region, whose emblem was the dolphin (French dauphin), ultimately deriving from Latin delphinus. The word entered English in the seventeenth century alongside other terms describing the French court.
How dauphine is actually used
A rare, historical term used mainly in discussions of pre-revolutionary France. In cookery, 'dauphine' also appears in the fixed phrase 'potatoes dauphine', referring to a dish of mashed potatoes mixed with choux pastry and fried — a usage derived from the same French word but distinct from the title.
Easily confused with dauphine
A dauphin is the male heir to the French throne, while a dauphine is his wife.
A dolphin is a marine mammal, whereas dauphine is a historical French royal title; the two words are unrelated despite a superficial resemblance.