For a sailor drifting across the sea for months on end, spiraling to the depths of boredom or fear, the enchanting note of a song over the water or a glimpse of a beautiful woman may be a welcome reprieve, unless he is pulled from his ship right after.
Like the ocean, mermaids in stories throughout history sway from treacherous to serene, and many tales have even inspired modern conservation efforts.
From the Selkies of Scotland to the Ipupiara of 16th-century Brazil, the history of mermaids stretches back through the folklore, legends, and myths of different cultures around the world. While some tales feature beautiful women with long tails instead of legs who send sailors to the bottom of the sea, others depict helpful goddesses, creatures more bird than fish, or beings more fish than woman.
Believe It or Not!, the first mermaid tale might swim all the way back to ancient Syria around 1000 BC. Legend has it that Atargatis, deeply in love with a mortal shepherd, accidentally caused his death. Stricken with sorrow and guilt, she plunged into a lake, hoping to become a fish. However, her divine beauty shone through, transforming her into a mermaid instead.
Mermen appear in Babylonian mythology, where the god Ea is described as having the body of both a man and a fish. Then there’s the more well-known merman, Triton, who was depicted as half man and half fish in art.
In the 3rd century BC, some Classical period artifacts, such as an earthenware bowl from Athens and a terracotta oil lamp, depicted sirens with mermaid-like features. The first known literary reference to sirens resembling modern-day mermaids appeared in the early 8th century AD in the Anglo-Latin catalog ‘Liber Monstrorum,’ which described them as ‘sea-girls… with the body of a maiden, but have scaly fishes’ tails.'
Another early depiction of mermaids is up for debate. Cave paintings can be found in The Cave of Swimmers in Egypt , and some people say they look like they have tails. It should be noted that some of the mermaid painting pictures online likely come from Animal Planet’s Mermaids: The Body Found , which Snopes has called “speculative science fiction.”
Other early mermaid cave paintings can be found near Oudtshoorn in South Africa in The Cango Caves. These paintings show human figures with fish tails, and the area is rich in stories of mermaids. According to South Africa Facts , there are spoken stories from 1875 about evil spirits under the waters of Eseljagtspoort who would appear as women and drag people to their deaths.
While many people think of mermaids as the enchanting songstresses from Disney movies, sirens have a much darker reputation. These mythical creatures are often depicted as the ones who lure unsuspecting sailors to their doom with their irresistible songs.
Sirens appear in Greek mythology, notably in Homer's The Odyssey , though this version of the creatures has them with bird characteristics instead of fish, though they did sing and attempt to draw men on the ship to their deaths.
Over time, especially during the Middle Ages, sirens in stories began to take on the mermaid appearance of having the top half of a woman and the bottom half of a scaly fish.
Mermaids have graced the silver screen for over a century, cementing their place in the history of cinema. The earliest known mermaid film is Georges Méliès’ 1904 silent short, The Mermaid , or in French, La Sirèn, which depicts a woman in a tank with a mermaid tail.
In 1948, the film Miranda sparked audience's interest in mermaids when a lonely one meets a sailor and convinces him to bring her to his home.
The 1980s saw a resurgence of mermaid films, most notably with Disney’s animated classic The Little Mermaid, in 1989. This film, based on Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tale, introduced audiences to Ariel.
The impact Ariel has had on conservation is impressive, with fans even creating a campaign called “ Protect Ariel’s Home ” in celebration of the live-action version.
The founders and participants partnered with organizations and activists to protect the beauty of our ocean.
Mermaids and sirens still exist in present-day countries. This includes Haiti and Zimbabwe and in cultures across South Africa like Sotho, Zulu, Tswanas, Xhosa, and more. Likewise, many Australian Aboriginals currently believe that mermaids swim in the rivers and ocean, like the Yawkyawk, said to have seaweed for hair or the Ji-Merdiwa, who some believe to be tricksters.
People in various cultures believe that if a person is taken by a siren or mermaid, the family should not cry until they return or the person will die. If they return, it is said they may come back as a healer but unable to speak the secrets they witnessed.
What do you think? Are mermaids the stuff of myth, or should you be careful the next time you hear a beautiful song near the water?
