Merman
Encyclopedia
Mermaid
A mermaid is a mythological aquatic creature with a female human head, arms, and torso and the tail of a fish. A male version of a mermaid is known as a "merman" and in general both males and females are known as "merfolk"...
s – legendary creature
Legendary creature
A legendary creature is a mythological or folkloric creature.-Origin:Some mythical creatures have their origin in traditional mythology and have been believed to be real creatures, for example the dragon, the unicorn, and griffin...
s who have the form of a human from the waist up and are fish
Fish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
-like from the waist down.
Mythology
In Greek mythologyGreek mythology
Greek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the ancient Greeks, concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. They were a part of religion in ancient Greece...
, mermen were often illustrated to have green seaweed
Seaweed
Seaweed is a loose, colloquial term encompassing macroscopic, multicellular, benthic marine algae. The term includes some members of the red, brown and green algae...
-like hair, a beard, and a trident
Trident
A trident , also called a trishul or leister or gig, is a three-pronged spear. It is used for spear fishing and was also a military weapon. Tridents are featured widely in mythical, historical and modern culture. The major Hindu god, Shiva the Destroyer and the sea god Poseidon or Neptune are...
. In Irish mythology, mermen are described as extremely ugly creatures with pointed green teeth, pig-like eyes, green hair, and a red nose. In Finnish mythology
Finnish mythology
Finnish mythology is the mythology that went with Finnish paganism which was practised by the Finnish people prior to Christianisation. It has many features shared with fellow Finnic Estonian mythology and its non-Finnic neighbours, the Balts and the Scandinavians...
, a merman (vetehinen) is often portrayed as a magical, powerful, handsome, bearded man with the tail of a fish. He can cure illnesses, lift curse
Curse
A curse is any expressed wish that some form of adversity or misfortune will befall or attach to some other entity—one or more persons, a place, or an object...
s and brew potion
Potion
A potion is a consumable medicine or poison.In mythology and literature, a potion is usually made by a magician, sorcerer, dragon, fairy or witch and has magical properties. It might be used to heal, bewitch or poison people...
s, but he can also cause unintended harm by becoming too curious about human life. The boto
Boto
The Amazon river dolphin, alternatively Bufeo, Bufeo Colorado, Boto Cor de Rosa, Boutu, Nay, Tonina, or Pink Dolphin , is a freshwater river dolphin endemic to the Orinoco, Amazon and Araguaia/Tocantins River systems of Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia and Venezuela...
of the Amazon River
Amazon River
The Amazon of South America is the second longest river in the world and by far the largest by waterflow with an average discharge greater than the next seven largest rivers combined...
regions is described according to local lore as taking the form of a human or merman, also known as encantado ("enchanted one" in Portuguese
Portuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
) and with the habit of seducing human women and impregnating them. Chinese mermen were believed to only surface during storms or, in some cases, were believed to have the ability to cause storms.
The actions and behavior of mermen can vary wildly depending on the source and time period of the stories. They have been said to sink ships by summoning great storms, but also said to be wise teachers, according to earlier mythology. A merman, like a mermaid, attracts humans with singing and tones.
Notable mermen
- The most well-known merman was probably TritonTriton (mythology)Triton is a mythological Greek god, the messenger of the big sea. He is the son of Poseidon, god of the sea, and Amphitrite, goddess of the sea, whose herald he is...
, son of PoseidonPoseidonPoseidon was the god of the sea, and, as "Earth-Shaker," of the earthquakes in Greek mythology. The name of the sea-god Nethuns in Etruscan was adopted in Latin for Neptune in Roman mythology: both were sea gods analogous to Poseidon...
and AmphitriteAmphitriteIn ancient Greek mythology, Amphitrite was a sea-goddess and wife of Poseidon. Under the influence of the Olympian pantheon, she became merely the consort of Poseidon, and was further diminished by poets to a symbolic representation of the sea...
. Although Amphitrite gave birth to a merman, neither Poseidon nor Amphitrite were merfolkMerfolkMerfolk may refer to mythical/fictional creatures:*Merperson *Merfolk *Merfolk *Merfolk...
, although both were able to live under water as easily as on land. Triton was also known as the Trumpeter of the Sea for his usage of a conch shellConchA conch is a common name which is applied to a number of different species of medium-sized to large sea snails or their shells, generally those which are large and have a high spire and a siphonal canal....
. - Other noteworthy mermen were the BabyloniaBabyloniaBabylonia was an ancient cultural region in central-southern Mesopotamia , with Babylon as its capital. Babylonia emerged as a major power when Hammurabi Babylonia was an ancient cultural region in central-southern Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq), with Babylon as its capital. Babylonia emerged as...
n Oannes and Ea, and the SumerSumerSumer was a civilization and historical region in southern Mesopotamia, modern Iraq during the Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age....
ian EnkiEnkiEnki is a god in Sumerian mythology, later known as Ea in Akkadian and Babylonian mythology. He was originally patron god of the city of Eridu, but later the influence of his cult spread throughout Mesopotamia and to the Canaanites, Hittites and Hurrians...
. - Another notable merman from Greek mythology was GlaucusGlaucusGlaucus is a Greek name. In modern Greek usage, the name is usually transliterated Glafkos. It may refer to:*Glaucus, a sea-god in Greek mythology*Glaucus , a mythical Lycian captain in the Trojan War...
. He was born a human and lived his early life as a fisherman. One day, while fishing, he saw that the fish he caught would jump from the grass and into the sea. He ate some of the grass, believing it to have magical properties, and felt an overwhelming desire to be in the sea. He jumped in the ocean and refused to go back on land. The sea gods nearby heard his prayers and transformed him into a sea god. Ovid describes the transformation of Glaucus in the MetamorphosesMetamorphoses (poem)Metamorphoses is a Latin narrative poem in fifteen books by the Roman poet Ovid describing the history of the world from its creation to the deification of Julius Caesar within a loose mythico-historical framework. Completed in AD 8, it is recognized as a masterpiece of Golden Age Latin literature...
, describing him as a blue-green man with a fishy member where his legs had been. - Norse mythology, in particular Icelandic folklore, has mermen known as Marbendlar.
- In DogonDogon peopleThe Dogon are an ethnic group living in the central plateau region of Mali, south of the Niger bend near the city of Bandiagara in the Mopti region. The population numbers between 400,000 and 800,000 The Dogon are best known for their religious traditions, their mask dances, wooden sculpture and...
mythology (not to be confused with the semitic fish god DagonDagonDagon was originally an Assyro-Babylonian fertility god who evolved into a major northwest Semitic god, reportedly of grain and fish and/or fishing...
), ancestral spirits called NommoNommoThe Nommo are ancestral spirits worshipped by the Dogon tribe of Mali. The word Nommos is derived from a Dogon word meaning, "to make one drink," The Nommos are usually described as amphibious, hermaphroditic, fish-like creatures...
had humanoid upper torsos, legs and feet, and a fish-like lower torso and tail. - The Russian medieval epic SadkoSadkoSadko is a Russian medieval epic . The title character is an adventurer, merchant and gusli musician from Novgorod.-Synopsis:Sadko played the gusli on the shores of a lake. The Sea Tsar enjoyed his music, and offered to help him...
contains a Sea Tsar who is a merman.
Cryptozoology
A "merman" (actually a Fiji mermaidFiji mermaid
The Fiji mermaid was an object comprising the torso and head of a juvenile monkey sewn to the back half of a fish, covered in papier-mâché...
) was supposedly found in Banff, Alberta
Banff, Alberta
Banff is a town within Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada. It is located in Alberta's Rockies along the Trans-Canada Highway, approximately west of Calgary and east of Lake Louise....
. It has a display at the Indian Trading Post.
Entertainment
In some modern works and films however, mermen are portrayed as handsome, strong and brave. They are almost always portrayed wearing no clothing, no matter what the temperature of the water is, with the exception of armour or cloaks in some settings.- King Triton is a prominent character in Disney's The Little Mermaid franchise.
- The Thirteenth YearThe Thirteenth YearThe Thirteenth Year is a 1999 Disney Channel Original Movie. It was released May 15, 1999 and is a mix of comedy and fantasy. The film was directed by Duwayne Dunham, who has directed other children and Disney movies, including Little Giants and Halloweentown...
(1999) is about a teenage boy turning into a merman. - In the DC ComicsDC ComicsDC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
mythology, mermen are a common fixture of the AquamanAquamanAquaman is a fictional superhero who appears in comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Paul Norris and Mort Weisinger, the character debuted in More Fun Comics #73 . Initially a backup feature in DC's anthology titles, Aquaman later starred in several volumes of a solo title...
's mythos, often showing a parochialistic rivalry with humanoid water-breathers. Their origins are described in the Atlantis Chronicles, the metafictional collection of atlanteanAtlantisAtlantis is a legendary island first mentioned in Plato's dialogues Timaeus and Critias, written about 360 BC....
lore. When Orin the First, ancestor of Aquaman and first king of Poseidons (an underwater city born after the submerging of Atlantis) perfected a serum to turn human beings into water-breathers (the current humanoid water-breathers, ancestors of Aquaman himself and his people), his sorcerous brother Shalako spitefully tampered with the serum, using dark magic to turn his fellow citizens of Tritons into mermen and mermaids. One peculiar merman, the villainous Kordax the Accursed, Shalako's nephew, exibits a strengh exceeding his brethen and the ability to telepatically commune with water life, somehow passing both gifts to Aquaman, making him a superhero and an outcast at the same time. - EroticaEroticaErotica are works of art, including literature, photography, film, sculpture and painting, that deal substantively with erotically stimulating or sexually arousing descriptions...
author Megan Hussey has written several romantic e-books pertaining to the merman legend, including "A Good Catch" and "Prince of the Seas," released through Silk's Vault publishing, as well as "Azure Masquerade" and "Passion Storm" through Midnight Showcase (in print, audio and e-book versions). - The Creature from the Black LagoonCreature from the Black LagoonCreature from the Black Lagoon is a 1954 monster horror film directed by Jack Arnold, and starring Richard Carlson, Julia Adams, Richard Denning, Antonio Moreno, and Whit Bissell. The eponymous creature was played by Ben Chapman on land and Ricou Browning in underwater scenes...
could be seen as a modern adaptation of the merman myth. - One of the main villains in the He-Man and the Masters of the UniverseHe-Man and the Masters of the UniverseHe-Man and the Masters of the Universe is an American animated television series produced by Filmation based on Mattel's successful toy line Masters of the Universe...
animated series was named Mer-Man; he was the lord of aquatic beings of similar appearance. - In an episode of Family GuyFamily GuyFamily Guy is an American animated television series created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series centers on the Griffins, a dysfunctional family consisting of parents Peter and Lois; their children Meg, Chris, and Stewie; and their anthropomorphic pet dog Brian...
, after falling overboard from a cruise ship, Lois GriffinLois GriffinLois Griffin is a character from the animated television series Family Guy. She is voiced by writer Alex Borstein and first appeared on television, along with the rest of the family in the 15-minute short on December 20, 1998. Lois was created and designed by series creator Seth MacFarlane...
is saved from drowning by a merman who, in reverse of tradition, has the upper body of a fish and lower body of a man. The merman, believing all women fantasize about making love with mermen, is incensed when Lois rebuffs his advances. The merman attempts to force himself upon Lois before she pushes him down and leaves him flapping helplessly in the sand. - In Kamen Rider KivaKamen Rider Kivais the title of the 2008 Kamen Rider Japanese tokusatsu television series produced by Toei Company and Ishimori Productions. It premiered on January 27, 2008, following the finale of Kamen Rider Den-O. It aired as a part of TV Asahi's 2008 Super Hero Time block with Engine Sentai Go-onger...
, Bassha is a Merman who takes a form of a young boy, and provides one of Kiva's weapons. He can spit deadly water bubbles. - Matthew ArnoldMatthew ArnoldMatthew Arnold was a British poet and cultural critic who worked as an inspector of schools. He was the son of Thomas Arnold, the famed headmaster of Rugby School, and brother to both Tom Arnold, literary professor, and William Delafield Arnold, novelist and colonial administrator...
's poem "The Forsaken Merman" is based on the story of a merman marrying a human. - Jimi HendrixJimi HendrixJames Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix was an American guitarist and singer-songwriter...
sings about himself escaping from a war torn world with his love Catherina and becoming a merman in the sea in his song "1983... (A Merman I Should Turn to Be)1983... (A Merman I Should Turn to Be)"1983... " is a song by English/American psychedelic rock The Jimi Hendrix Experience, featured on their 1968 third studio album Electric Ladyland...
", from the psychedelic album Electric LadylandElectric LadylandElectric Ladyland is the third and final album of new material by the Jimi Hendrix Experience, released in October 1968 on Reprise Records, catalogue 2RS 6307. It is the only Hendrix studio album professionally produced under his supervision. It topped the Billboard 200 album chart for two weeks in...
by The Jimi Hendrix ExperienceThe Jimi Hendrix ExperienceThe Jimi Hendrix Experience were an English-American psychedelic rock band that formed in London in October 1966. Comprising eponymous singer-songwriter and guitarist Jimi Hendrix, bassist and backing vocalist Noel Redding and drummer Mitch Mitchell, the band was active until June 1969, in which...
.