Mermaids are sea beings with a human upper body and a fish's tail. Fish-tailed versions appear in European writing from the 7th or 8th century, as the singing sirens of Greek myth, first pictured as bird-women, merged with older sea maidens. That is why Spanish and Italian still call a mermaid a sirena and French a sirène. Nearly every coastal culture has its own merfolk, from the Irish merrow and the Scottish selkie to the Japanese ningyo.
On 8 January 1493, near the mouth of the river he called the Río del Oro (the Yaque del Norte, by Monte Cristi in today's Dominican Republic), Christopher Columbus saw three 'sirens' and wrote that they were not as beautiful as they are painted, with rather masculine faces. Historians agree he saw manatees. On 15 June 1608, two of Henry Hudson's crew reported a mermaid in Arctic waters, in either the Norwegian or the Barents Sea. Around 1830, seaweed cutters on Benbecula in the Outer Hebrides saw a small, woman-like creature in the water; a boy hit it with a stone, and a few days later a small body washed up at Culla Bay, where the local sheriff is said to have had it buried in a coffin and shroud.
Hoaxes have always followed. The 'Feejee mermaid' that P. T. Barnum showed in New York in 1842 was a monkey's upper body sewn to a fish's tail, one of many made for sale in Japan. In August 2009, after dozens of people reported a mermaid leaping out of Haifa Bay, the Israeli town of Kiryat Yam offered a $1 million reward for proof. In February 2012 Zimbabwe's water minister told a parliamentary committee that workers at dam projects near Gokwe and Mutare had refused to carry on because of mermaids, and traditional ceremonies were held to appease the water spirits.
In May 2012 Animal Planet aired 'Mermaids: The Body Found', a fictional mockumentary with actors playing scientists. So many viewers took it as real that NOAA, the US ocean agency, published a statement that no evidence of aquatic humanoids has ever been found. Manatees and dugongs, whose order Sirenia is named after the sirens, are the usual explanation for real sightings, along with seals.
What the stories say
- A human-like head and shoulders above the water, then a tail as it dives
- Long hair, often combed on a rock
- Singing or calls heard over the water
- A shape that turns out to be a manatee, dugong or seal
Famous cases
- 1493Columbus sees three 'sirens', almost certainly manatees
Monte Cristi, Dominican RepublicIn January 1493, sailing off Hispaniola, Christopher Columbus wrote that he saw three 'sirens' rise out of the sea and that they were not as beautiful as they are painted. Historians widely believe he saw manatees.
- 1830The Benbecula mermaid is said to be buried by the shore
Benbecula, ScotlandA local story from the Outer Hebrides says a small mermaid-like creature was found on Benbecula around 1830 and buried near the sea. The tale survives only as local legend; no remains have been documented.
- 1842P. T. Barnum shows the 'Feejee mermaid', a hoax
New York City, New YorkIn 1842 showman P. T. Barnum exhibited the 'Feejee mermaid' in New York, drumming up interest with fake letters and a fake naturalist, 'Dr. J. Griffin'. The object was a monkey's head and torso sewn onto a fish tail. The original later disappeared, probably in one of the fires at Barnum's museum.
- 2009Town offers $1 million for proof of a Haifa Bay mermaid
Kiryat Yam, IsraelIn August 2009, after dozens of people said they saw a mermaid leaping from the water off Kiryat Yam in Haifa Bay, the town offered a $1 million reward for proof that it existed. The offer drew wide media coverage, but no proof was produced.
- 2012Dam workers refuse to work, blaming mermaids
Gokwe, ZimbabweIn February 2012, work on reservoirs near Gokwe and Mutare in Zimbabwe stopped when workers refused to continue, saying mermaids (in local tradition, water spirits) had driven them away. The case was reported by water resources minister Samuel Sipepa Nkomo.
- 2012Osborne Dam reports reach Zimbabwe's parliament
Mutare, ZimbabweIn February 2012 water resources minister Sam Sipepa Nkomo told a Senate committee that workers at the Osborne Dam in Manicaland and at Gokwe were refusing to return, saying mermaids had chased them off, and that traditional rituals would be held before repairs. He said he did not personally believe in mermaids and suggested strong currents might explain the danger.
Source: 'Mermaid' Sightings in Zimbabwe Spark Debate Over Traditional Beliefs - VOA Zimbabwe
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