Topics: Fabulous Creatures : Mermaids

A mermaid is a legendary creature that has the head and torso of a human being and tail of an aquatic creature, usually a fish or dolphin. Mermaids are not exclusively female rather the word is inclusive of mermen, who are less commonly sighted. Mermaids, here the term is specifically female, have beautiful singing voices and like the siren sometimes use it to lure ships to their doom. (contrary to popular opinion sirens and mermaids are not the same... a siren is half bird not half fish). Mermaids will also use their beauty and voice to entice individual human males to come to them. Sometimes this seems to be malicious and the hapless man is drowned but sometimes the mermaid is seeking a mate from among mankind as opposed to her own. Sometimes a human male managed to force a mermaid to join him on land and become his wife. Such liaisons were most likely doomed since an enchantment was required to give the mermaid human legs and the breaking of some taboo or promise would allow the mermaid to resume her natural form and escape. Mermaids sometimes had other compacts with humankind and the breaking of these compacts had dire consequences. For example a mermaid cared for Padstow (in Cornwall) harbour but when an impetuous youth shot at her she vanished not only relinquishing her duties but cursing the harbour. This according to folklore is the origin of the death bar, a sand bank that makes entering Padstow by sea risky.