Ningyo means 'human fish', a creature with human and fish features. The Nihon Shoki, written in 720, records man-like creatures netted in 619 on the Gamō River in Ōmi Province and in Settsu Province; because they came from fresh water, some researchers think they were giant salamanders. Later ningyo are sea creatures, and in medieval Japan a stranding was often read as a warning of war or disaster.
The most famous legend tells of a girl from Obama in Wakasa Province who ate ningyo flesh without knowing it, stopped ageing and became Yao Bikuni, the 'eight-hundred-year nun'. 15th-century writings say a 'white nun' aged 800 appeared in Kyoto in 1449. Not every ningyo was unlucky: one reported in Obama Bay in 1310 was taken as a good sign.
In the Edo period, dried 'ningyo' were made by joining parts of fish and other animals, and some are still kept in temples. In 2022 and 2023 researchers from Kurashiki University of Science and the Arts examined one held at Enjuin temple in Asakuchi, Okayama, and found it was built from cloth, paper and cotton covered with fish skin, with a fish tail, probably in the late 1800s. Oarfish, seals, dugongs and Steller's sea cows have all been suggested as the source of real sightings.
What the stories say
- A fish with a human-like face
- A red crest like a cockscomb
- A stranding followed by bad news
- A mummified 'mermaid' kept in a temple
Famous cases
- 1310A ningyo in Obama Bay is taken as a lucky sign
Obama, JapanJapanese records list a ningyo (fish-like 'mermaid') appearing in Obama Bay in Wakasa Province in 1310. Unlike many ningyo sightings, which were read as bad omens, this one was considered auspicious and was given the name 'True Immortal'.
- 1449A 'white nun' said to be 800 years old appears
Kyoto, JapanFifteenth-century sources say a 'white nun' (Shira Bikuni) aged 800 appeared in Kyoto around 1449. She is linked to the legend of Yao Bikuni, a girl from Obama in Wakasa who gained near-endless youth by eating ningyo flesh. The tale is folklore.
- 2023Enjuin temple's 'mermaid mummy' shown to be man-made
Asakuchi, JapanResearchers from Kurashiki University of Science and the Arts studied a foot-long 'mermaid mummy' kept at Enju-in temple in Asakuchi. Their results, reported in February 2023, showed it was made of cloth, cotton and paper with fish skin and animal hair, with no real skeleton, and that it probably dated from the late 1800s.
Source: We Finally Know What Japan's Eerie Mummified Mer-Monkey Really Is - ScienceAlert
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