The Dax symbiont
Dax was a Trill symbiont, a symbiotic lifeform that existed with the humanoid Trill as a joined species. Each joining of Dax with a host created a new, unique individual, but each individual also carried the memories of the previous hosts.
History
As of 2375, the Dax symbiont had been joined to nine official hosts, starting with Lela Dax through its last known host, Ezri Dax. Additionally, the Dax symbiont was temporarily joined with Verad during Jadzia's first year on Deep Space 9, and in an alternate timeline was later joined with Jadzia's descendant, Yedrin.
Dax was born on Trill in 2018. By 2374, it had been married six times – twice as a groom, and four times as a bride. (DS9: "You Are Cordially Invited") Dax had a total of nine children – five as a mother, and four as a father. (DS9: "Time's Orphan")
Over a period of more than two hundred years, Dax served as a field docent to numerous Trill initiates, and became infamous for recommending the rejection of 57 candidates for joining through the program. (DS9: "Playing God")
Dax has held numerous positions of distinction throughout its many lives including head of the Trill Symbiosis Commission, the leader of the Trill government, Federation ambassador, and two careers in Starfleet. (DS9: "Facets")
| The hosts of Dax |
|---|
| Lela • Tobin • Emony • Audrid • Torias • Joran • Curzon • Jadzia • Ezri Verad • Yedrin |
Background information
It is not known when the Dax symbiont was first joined to a host. However, it is unlikely that the first joining occurred as early as 2018 because this would mean that the first four hosts of the Dax symbiont served as host for an average of nearly 66 years, from 2018 until 2284 when Torias Dax became host. Given that Curzon Dax served as host for over eighty years this may be possible, but seems somewhat unlikely as several hosts of the symbiont – notably, Torias, Joran, and Jadzia – served in that capacity for less than a decade.
Moreover, the third Dax host, Emony, is known to have served as host in 2245, over two hundred years after the Dax symbiont was born. Had the symbiont been joined as early as 2018 the first two hosts, Lela and Tobin would have served for an average of nearly 110 years apiece. It is also notable that Dax had served as field docent for two hundred years as of 2370, suggesting that the first joining for Dax occurred no later than 2170. Also, it appears that newly born symbionts live for a period in the breeding pools in the Caves of Mak'ala on the Trill homeworld. (DS9: "Equilibrium")
The British comedian Bill Bailey (who once hosted the show Space Cadets, which featured shows called "Vulcans vs. Klingons" and "Quarks vs. Roms") named his son Dax after the symbiont. He commented "Yes, he's called Dax after a symbiont, a creature that absorbs the power of others. I may just have given him too much baggage. I'll tell him he's named after the German stock exchange". [1]