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A '''mermaid''' is a ] aquatic creature with a female human head and torso and the tail of a ]. Mermaids are represented broadly in folklore, literature, and popular culture. |
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A '''mermaid''' is a ] aquatic creature with a female human head and torso and the tail of a ]. |
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LILI IS A LEGEND !! ESPECIALLY ON WIKIPEADIA.|Similar_creatures = ]<br />]<br />] |
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|Mythology = World mythology |
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==Overview and etymology== |
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|Country = Worldwide |
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The word is a compound of ''mere'', the ] word for "sea", and ''maid'', a woman. The male equivalent is a '']''. |
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|Habitat = Ocean, sea |
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|First_Reported = c. 1000 BC |
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Much like ]s, mermaids will sing to people or to gods to enchant them, distracting them from their work and causing people to walk off a ship's deck or to run their ship aground. Other stories depict mermaids squeezing the life out of drowning men while attempting to rescue them. They are also said to carry humans down to their underwater kingdoms. In ]'s '']'', it is said that mermaids forget that humans cannot breathe underwater, while other stories say they drown men out of spite, while still other fables portray mermaids as benevolent toward men.{{Citation needed|date=October 2009}} |
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The sirens of ] are sometimes portrayed in later ] as mermaid-like; in fact, some languages use the same word for both bird and fish creatures, such as the Maltese word 'sirena'. Other related types of ] or ]ary creatures are ] (e.g., various ]) and ]s, animals that can transform themselves from seals to humans.{{Citation needed|date=October 2009}} |
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A '''mermaid''' is a ] aquatic creature with a female human head and torso and the tail of a ]. |
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LILI IS A LEGEND !! ESPECIALLY ON WIKIPEADIA. |
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==History== |
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===Ancient Near East=== |
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The first known mermaid ] appeared in ], ca. 1000 BC. The goddess ], mother of ]n queen ], loved a mortal shepherd and unintentionally killed him. Ashamed, she jumped into a lake to take the form of a ], but the waters would not conceal her divine beauty. Thereafter, she took the form of a mermaid—human above the waist, fish below—though the earliest representations of Atargatis showed her as a fish with a human head and legs, similar to the ]n ]. The Greeks recognized Atargatis under the name Derketo. Prior to 546 BC, the ] philosopher ] proposed that mankind had sprung from an aquatic species of animal. He thought that humans, with their extended ], could not have survived otherwise. This idea reappeared as the ] in the twentieth century.{{Citation needed|date=October 2009}} |
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A popular Greek legend turns ]'s sister, ], into a mermaid after she died.<ref></ref> She lived, it was said, in the ] and when she encountered a ship, she asked its sailors only one question: ''"Is King Alexander alive?"'' ({{lang-el|"Ζει ο Βασιλιάς Αλέξανδρος}};"), to which the correct answer was: ''"He lives and reigns and conquers the world"'' (Greek: "Ζει και βασιλεύει και τον κόσμο κυριεύει"). This answer pleased her so she calmed the waters and wished the ship farewell. Any other answer would spur her into a rage. She would raise a terrible storm, with certain doom for the ship and every sailor on board.<ref>Mermaids and Ikons: A Greek Summer (1978) page 73 by ] ISBN 978-0-88784-062-3</ref><ref>Folktales from Greece Page 96 ISBN 1-56308-908-4</ref> |
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] in ] (2nd century AD) in ''De Dea Syria'' ("Concerning the Syrian Goddess") wrote of the Syrian temples he had visited: |
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:"Among them - Now that is the traditional story among them concerning the temple. But other men swear that ] of ], whose deeds are many in ], also founded this site, and not for ] ] but for her own Mother, whose name was ]" |
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:"I saw the likeness of Derketo in ], a strange marvel. It is woman for half its length, but the other half, from thighs to feet, stretched out in a fish's tail. But the image in ] is entirely a woman, and the grounds for their account are not very clear. They consider ]es to be sacred, and they never eat them; and though they eat all other ]s, they do not eat the ], for she is holy so they believe. And these things are done, they believe, because of Derketo and ], the first because Derketo has the shape of a fish, and the other because ultimately Semiramis turned into a ]. Well, I may grant that the temple was a work of Semiramis perhaps; but that it belongs to Derketo I do not believe in any way. For among the ], some people do not eat fish, and that is not done to honor Derketo."<ref> |
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Lucian of Samosata, ''De Dea Syria'' Part 2, Chapter 14</ref> |
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===Arabian Nights=== |
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] (1899)]] |
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The '']'' includes several tales featuring "Sea People", such as ''Djullanar the Sea-girl''. Unlike the depiction in other mythologies, these are anatomically identical to land-bound humans, differing only in their ability to breathe and live underwater. They can (and do) interbreed with land humans, the children of such unions sharing in the ability to live underwater. |
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In another ''Arabian Nights'' tale, "]", the ] Abdullah the Fisherman gains the ability to breathe underwater and discovers an underwater ] society that is portrayed as an inverted reflection of society on land, in that the underwater society follows a form of ] where concepts like money and clothing do not exist. Other ''Arabian Nights'' tales deal with lost ancient technologies, advanced ancient civilizations that went astray, and catastrophes which overwhelmed them.<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Arabian Nights: A Companion|first=Robert|last=Irwin|publisher=]|year=2003|isbn=1860649831|pages=211–2|postscript=<!--None-->}}</ref> |
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In "]", the protagonist Bulukiya's quest for the ] leads him to explore the seas, where he encounters societies of mermaids.<ref name=Irwin>{{Cite book|title= One Thousand and One Nights: A Companion|first=Robert|last=Irwin|publisher=]|year=2003|isbn=1860649831|page=209|postscript=<!--None-->}}</ref> "Julnar the Sea-Born and Her Son King Badr Basim of Persia" is yet another ''Arabian Nights'' tale about mermaids. When sailors come the mermaids sing, and some men are led straight to their doom. If they follow the mermaids' lovely and beautiful voices, they do not know what they are doing or where they're going. |
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===British Isles=== |
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], c. 1856–1858]] |
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Mermaids were noted in British folklore as unlucky omens – both foretelling disaster and provoking it.<ref name="briggs">Katharine Briggs, ''An Encyclopedia of Fairies, Hobgoblins, Brownies, Boogies, and Other Supernatural Creatures'', "Mermaids", p 287. ISBN 0-394-73467-X</ref> Several variants of the ] '']'' depict a mermaid speaking to the doomed ships; in some, she tells them they will never see land again, and in others, she claims they are near shore, which they are wise enough to know means the same thing. They can also be a sign of rough weather.<ref>Francis James Child, ''The English and Scottish Popular Ballads'', v 2, p 19, Dover Publications, New York 1965</ref> |
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Some mermaids were described as monstrous in size, up to {{convert|2000|ft|m}}.<ref name="briggs"/> |
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Mermaids could also swim up ]s to ] lakes. One day, in a lake near his house, the ] of Lorntie went to aid a woman he thought drowning; a servant of his pulled him back, warning that it was a mermaid, and the mermaid screamed after that she would have killed him if it were not for his servant.<ref> |
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K. M. Briggs, ''The Fairies in English Tradition and Literature'', p 57 University of Chicago Press, London, 1967</ref> |
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On occasion, mermaids could be more beneficent, teaching humans cures for disease.<ref> |
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K. M. Briggs, ''An Encyclopedia of Fairies, Hobgoblins, Brownies, Boogies, and Other Supernatural Creatures'', "Mermaids", p 288. ISBN 0-394-73467-X</ref> |
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Some tales raised the question of whether mermaids had immortal souls answering in the negative.<ref> |
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K. M. Briggs, ''An Encyclopedia of Fairies, Hobgoblins, Brownies, Boogies, and Other Supernatural Creatures'', "Mermaids", p 289. ISBN 0-394-73467-X</ref> The figure of ] appears as a sanctified mermaid, but she was a human being transformed into a mermaid; after three centuries, when Christianity had come to Ireland, she came to be baptized.<ref> |
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K. M. Briggs, ''An Encyclopedia of Fairies, Hobgoblins, Brownies, Boogies, and Other Supernatural Creatures'', "Liban", p 266-7. ISBN 0-394-73467-X</ref> |
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Mermen were noted as wilder and uglier than mermaids, but they were described as having little interest in humans.<ref> |
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K. M. Briggs, ''An Encyclopedia of Fairies, Hobgoblins, Brownies, Boogies, and Other Supernatural Creatures'', "Mermen", p 290. ISBN 0-394-73467-X</ref> |
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In ], there is a mermaid called the ] or "maid of the wave".<ref>{{Cite book | last = MacKenzie | first = Donald A. | authorlink = Donald A. MacKenzie | title = Scottish Folk-Lore and Folk Life — Studies in Race, Culture and Tradition | publisher = Blackie | year = 1931 | pages = 251 | url = http://books.google.com/?id=JcAu3xeAbu8C&pg=PA251 | isbn =9781444656367 |
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}}</ref> |
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===China=== |
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In some ancient fairytales of China, mermaid is a special species whose tears can turn into priceless pearls. What's more, mermaids can also knit an extremely valuable material which is not only slight but also beautiful and translucent. Because of this, fishermen longed to catch them, but it's difficult for them to survive for mermaids' splendid singing can simply drag them to coma. Actually, mermaid is a symbol of wonderful creatures in Ancient China. They are deft,beautiful and versatile. And the fishermen who want to catch mermaids are a symbol of negative character.<ref>{{Zh icon}}http://baike.baidu.com/view/210682.htm </ref> |
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===Warsaw Mermaid=== |
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] on the cover of an accounting book of the city.]] |
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The mermaid, or ''syrenka'', is the symbol of ].<ref>{{cite web| url =http://www.ucl.ac.uk/atlas/polish/mywarsaw/warsaw10.html |title =The Mermaid | accessdate = 2008-02-11 }}</ref> Images of a mermaid symbolized Warsaw on its crest since the middle of the 14th century.<ref>{{ |
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cite web| url = http://www.um.warszawa.pl/v_syrenka/perelki/index_en.php?mi_id=47&dz_id=2 |title = Warsaw Mermaid's Statue | accessdate = 2008-07-10 }}</ref> Several legends associate ] of mythology with the city, which may have been the mermaid association's origin.<ref name="legend">{{en icon}} {{ |
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cite web |author = |url = http://www.e-warsaw.pl/miasto/herb-1.htm |title = History of Warsaw's Coat of Arms |work = www.e-warsaw.pl |publisher = |pages = |page = |date = |accessdate = 2008-07-10}}</ref> |
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===Other=== |
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Among the ] of the ] the mermaid is called Aycayia.<ref> |
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</ref><ref>{{ |
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cite web | last=Bennett | first=Lennie | title=Four exhibitions woven into 'Textures' | url=http://www.tampabay.com/features/visualarts/article680572.ece | date=July 10, 2008 | work=tampabay.com | publisher=St. Petersburg Times | accessdate=2009-04-25 }}</ref> Her attributes relate to the goddess ], and the hibiscus flower of the majagua tree ].<ref> |
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</ref> |
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In the modern Caribbean the mermaid is found as ] ] ] (literally, 'the mermaid') who is lwa of wealth and beauty and the ] ]. |
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Examples from other cultures are the ] of ] and ], the ] of ], the ] of ] and ], the ]s of ] and ], the ] from ] and the Greek ]s, ]s, and ]s. One freshwater mermaid-like creature from ] is ], who is sometimes depicted with two fish tails, and other times with the lower body of a ]. It is said in ] that eating the flesh of a ] can grant unaging ]. In some European legends mermaids are said to be unlucky.{{Citation needed|date=October 2009}} |
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Mermaids and ] are also characters of ], where they are locally known as '']'', respectively.<ref name="TE"> |
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"Tagalog-English Dictionary by Leo James English, Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, Manila, distributed by National Book Store, 1583 pages, ISBN 971-91055-0-X</ref> The Javanese people believe that the southern beach in Java is a home of Javanese mermaid queen ].{{Citation needed|date=October 2009}} |
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==Claimed sightings== |
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Claimed sightings of dead or living mermaids have come from places as diverse as ] and ]. There are two Canadian reports from the area of ] and ], one from sometime between 1870 and 1890, the other from 1967.<ref></ref><ref></ref> |
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In August 2009, the town of ] in Israel offered a prize of ]1 million for anyone who could prove the existence of a mermaid off its coast, after dozens of people reported seeing a mermaid leaping out of the water like a dolphin and doing aerial tricks before returning to the depths.<ref>, '']'' 12 Aug. 2009.</ref> The prize has not yet been awarded. |
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==Symbolism== |
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According to ]’s book, ''The Mermaid and the Minotaur'', human-animal hybrids such as the minotaur and the mermaid convey the emergent understanding of the ancients that human beings were both one with and different from animals: <blockquote>" nature is internally inconsistent, that our continuities with, and our differences from, the earth's other animals are mysterious and profound; and in these continuities, and these differences, lie both a sense of strangeness on earth and the possible key to a way of feeling at home here."<ref name=Dinnerstein>], ''The Mermaid and the Minotaur''. New York: Harper and Row, 1963. Cited by </ref></blockquote> |
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==Art and literature== |
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{{See also|Mermaids in popular culture}} |
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] mermaid chair]] |
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One influential image was created by ], from 1895 to 1905, entitled ''A Mermaid'', (see the top of this article). An example of late British Academy style artwork, the piece debuted to considerable acclaim (and secured Waterhouse's place as a member of the ]), but disappeared into a private collection and did not resurface until the 1970s. It is again in the collection of the ].<ref>] ''et al'' (2008). ''J. W. Waterhouse: The Modern Pre-Raphaelite'', p. 144. Thames & Hudson Ltd, London. ISBN 978-90-8586-490-5.</ref> |
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The most famous in more recent centuries is ]'s ] '']'' (1836), which has been translated into many languages. Andersen's portrayal, immortalized with a famous bronze sculpture in ] harbour, has arguably become the standard and has influenced most modern Western depictions of mermaids since it was published. The mermaid, as conceived by Andersen, appears to represent the ] of ], which also could only obtain an immortal soul by marrying a human being.{{Citation needed|date=October 2009}} |
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The best known musical depictions of mermaids are those by ] in his ''Fair Melusina'' overture and the three "Rhine daughters" in ]'s ]. ], the name of one of the Rhine mermaids, has become a synonym for a siren. A more recent depiction in contemporary concert music is ''The Weeping Mermaid'' by Taiwanese composer ].{{Citation needed|date=October 2009}} |
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] has written a book called '']''. The title comes from a mermaid who becomes a (fictional) saint. |
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] published an 8-page comic in which the mermaid queen Atargatis captures two adventurers and attempts to imprison them forever. |
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Movie depictions include the comedy ] (]). A 1963 episode, ''The Cruelest Sea'', of the television series ], featured a real mermaid working at ] aquatic park. Mermaids also appeared in the popular supernatural drama television series '']'', and were the basis of its ] series '']''. Mermaid Chronicles Part 1: She Creature 2002 |
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Two carnies (Sewell and Gugino) abduct a mermaid in Ireland, circa 1900, and decide to transport her to America. Animated films include ]'s popular musical version of Andersen's tale, and ]'s '']''. |
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===Heraldry=== |
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] |
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In ], the charge of a mermaid is commonly represented with a comb and a mirror, and blazoned as a 'mermaid in her vanity'. Merfolk were used to symbolize eloquence in speech.{{Citation needed|date=October 2009}} |
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A shield and sword-wielding mermaid ('']'') is on the official ]. The city of ] also uses a mermaid as a symbol. The capital city of ] has the mermaid in its coat of arms.{{Citation needed|date=October 2009}} |
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The personal coat of arms of ], Canada's ], features two mermaids as supporters.<ref>{{ |
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cite web| url=http://www.gg.ca/heraldry/pub-reg/project-pic.asp?lang=e&ProjectID=929&ProjectElementID=3456| last=Canadian Heraldic Authority| title=The Public Register of Arms, Flags, and Badges of Canada > Michaëlle Jean| publisher=Queen's Printer for Canada| date=20 September 2005| accessdate=23 September 2008}}</ref> |
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==Hoaxes== |
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During the ] and ] eras, ]s, ] and victims of ] were exhibited in ]s as mermaids.{{Citation needed|date=October 2009}} |
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In the 19th century, ] displayed in his museum a ] hoax called the ''].'' Others have perpetrated similar hoaxes, which are usually ] fabrications or parts of deceased creatures, usually monkeys and fish, stitched together for the appearance of a grotesque mermaid. In the wake of the ], pictures of Fiji "mermaids" circulated on the Internet as supposed examples of items that had washed up amid the devastation, though they were no more real than Barnum's exhibit.<ref></ref> |
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==Sirenia== |
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] is an order of fully aquatic, herbivorous ]s that inhabit rivers, estuaries, coastal marine waters, swamps, and marine wetlands. Sirenians, including ] and the ], have major aquatic adaptations: arms used for steering, a paddle used for propulsion, hind limbs (legs) are two small bones floating deep in the muscle. They appear fat, but are fusiform, hydrodynamic, and highly muscular. Prior to the mid 19th century, mariners referred to these animals as mermaids.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.underwatertimes.com/news.php?article_id=05297681013 |title=Experts: Sea cow 'sirens' fuel mermaid mythology; sailors' deprivation sparked images |date=December 25, 2005 |work=underwatertimes.com |accessdate=October 30, 2009 }}</ref> |
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==Sirenomelia== |
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], also called "mermaid syndrome", is a rare ] ] in which a child is born with his or her legs fused together and reduced ]. This condition is about as rare as ], affecting one out of every 100,000 live births<ref name="Kallen">{{ |
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cite journal |author=Kallen B, Castilla EE, Lancaster PA, Mutchinick O, Knudsen LB, Martinez-Frias ML, Mastroiacovo P, Robert E |title=The cyclops and the mermaid: an epidemiological study of two types of rare malformation |journal=J Med Genet |year=1992 |pages=30–5 |volume=29 |issue=1 |pmid=1552541 |doi=10.1136/jmg.29.1.30 |pmc=1015818}}</ref> and is usually fatal within a day or two of birth because of ] and ] complications. Four survivors were known to be alive as of July 2003.<ref>{{ |
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cite web |url=http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6WKP-4950J75-14&_user=10&_rdoc=1&_fmt=&_rig=search&_sort=d&view=c&_acct=C000050221&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=10&md5=e3c14c888d56c7c1a6191a3567cfd7c5 |title=Journal of Pediatric Surgery: A surviving infant with sirenomelia (mermaid syndrome) associated with absent bladder |date=25 July 2003 |accessdate=2008-02-16 |work=ScienceDirect}}</ref> |
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==See also== |
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* ] |
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* ] |
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* ] |
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==References== |
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{{reflist}} |
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==External links== |
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{{commons}} |
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{{Wiktionary|mermaid}} |
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{{Wikisource|Portal:Mermaids}} |
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* by Heinz Insu Fenkl, from the mermaid-themed Summer 2003 issue of the ''Journal of Mythic Arts'' |
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* from Lucian of Samosata's ''On the Syrian God'' (2c. AD) |
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* mermaids on parade |
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