What is "mermaid"

Mermaid \Mer"maid\, n. [AS. mere lake, sea. See Mere lake, and maid.] A fabled marine creature, typically represented as having the upper part like that of a woman, and the lower like a fish; a sea nymph, sea woman, or woman fish.

Note: Chaucer uses this word as equivalent to the siren of the ancients.

Mermaid fish (Zo["o]l.) the angel fish ( Squatina).

Mermaid's glove (Zo["o]l.), a British branched sponge somewhat resembling a glove.

Mermaid's head (Zo["o]l.), a European spatangoid sea urchin ( Echinocardium cordatum) having some resemblance to a skull.

Mermaid weed (Bot.), an aquatic herb with dentate or pectinate leaves ( Proserpinaca palustris and Proserpinaca pectinacea).

mid-14c., mermayde, literally "maid of the sea," from Middle English mere "sea, lake" (see mere (n.)) + maid. Old English had equivalent merewif "water-witch" (see wife), meremenn "mermaid, siren." Tail-less in northern Europe; the fishy form is a medieval influence from classical sirens. A favorite sign of taverns and inns since at least early 15c. (in reference to the inn on Bread Street, Cheapside, London). Mermaid pie (1660s) was "a sucking pig baked whole in a crust."

n. A mythological creature with a woman's head and upper body, and a tail of a fish.

n. half woman and half fish; lives in the sea

A mermaid is a legendary aquatic creature with the head and upper body of a female human and the tail of a fish. Mermaids appear in the folklore of many cultures worldwide, including the Near East, Europe, Africa and Asia. The first stories appeared in ancient Assyria, in which the goddess Atargatis transformed herself into a mermaid out of shame for accidentally killing her human lover. Mermaids are sometimes associated with perilous events such as floods, storms, shipwrecks and drownings. In other folk traditions (or sometimes within the same tradition), they can be benevolent or beneficent, bestowing boons or falling in love with humans.

The male equivalent of the mermaid is the merman, also a familiar figure in folklore and heraldry. Although traditions about and sightings of mermen are less common than those of mermaids, they are generally assumed to co-exist with their female counterparts.

Some of the attributes of mermaids may have been influenced by the Sirens of Greek mythology. Historical accounts of mermaids, such as those reported by Christopher Columbus during his exploration of the Caribbean, may have been inspired by manatees and similar aquatic mammals. While there is no evidence that mermaids exist outside of folklore, reports of mermaid sightings continue to the present day, including 21st century examples from Israel and Zimbabwe.

Mermaids have been a popular subject of art and literature in recent centuries, such as in Hans Christian Andersen's well-known fairy tale " The Little Mermaid" (1836). They have subsequently been depicted in operas, paintings, books, films and comics.

A mermaid is believed to be a creature with the upper body of a woman and the lower body of a fish.

"Mermaid" is the second single from Japanese pop singer Hitomi Shimatani's fifth studio album, Heart & Symphony, and her eighteenth single overall. "Mermaid" is described as a mixture between dance, pop, and has some presumably gothic undertones due to the "dark" sound of the song and the organ and harpsichord used in parts of the song. The b-side, 風の降る空 (Kaze no Furu Sora) is a symphonic ballad, incorporating a string section, piano, and an acoustic guitar.

The single hit #18 on the Oricon charts and is reported to have sold around 20,500 copies.

The Do-it-yourself Mermaid is an 11 foot (3.4m) plywood sailing dinghy designed by Roger Hancock in 1962. Usually built at home, it is suitable for a crew of two or three. It can be sailed, rowed or motored and can be trailed or car-topped. The boat is gunter rigged, with one size of jib. A spinnaker is used for racing.

Mermaid, released in 2000, is a television movie based on the real-life story of Desiree Leanne Gill as she learns to accept her father's death.

the Mermaid (from Sumerian Kuli-ana: mermaid) in Sumerian mythology was one of the Heroes slain by Ninurta, patron god of Lagash, in ancient Iraq. Her body was hung on the foot-board of Ninurta's chariot (lines 55-63 ).

Mermaid ( Russian: Русалка, Rusalka) is a Russian 2007 comedy-drama film directed and written by Anna Melikyan. It is a loose adaptation of Hans Christian Andersen's The Little Mermaid. It was a box office success in Russia, won numerous awards and was selected as Russia's official submission to Foreign-Language Film category for the 2009 Academy Awards.

"Mermaid" is a song by American pop rock band Train from their sixth studio album, California 37. It was released as a single on December 27, 2012. The song was written by Pat Monahan, Espen Lind, Amund Bjørklund, Tor Erik Hermansen, Mikkel Eriksen and produced by Espionage, Butch Walker.

Mermaid (sometimes The Mermaid) is a 1979 outdoor sculpture by Roy Lichtenstein, composed of concrete, steel, polyurethane, enamel, palm tree, and water. It is located in Miami Beach at the Fillmore Miami Beach at Jackie Gleason Theater. Measuring 640 cm × 730 cm × 330 cm (252 in × 288 in × 132 in), it is his first public art commission according to some sources, although others point to a temporary pavilion that predates this work. It is also the second piece of public art in the city of Miami Beach. Since the sculpture was installed, it has been restored several times, and the theater that it accompanies has been restored and renamed twice.

Mermaid ( Danish: Havfrue) is a bronze sculpture designed by the Danish sculptor Anne Marie Carl-Nielsen, depicting a mermaid. The original bronze cast from 1921 is on display in the Danish National Gallery while another cast was installed at Christians Brygge outside the Royal Danish Library in Copenhagen in 2009. The original plaster model is owned by the Carl Nielsen Museum and is on display in the Funen Art Museum in Odense. Carl-Nielsen depicts her mermaid in a more dramatic pose than that of Edvard Eriksen's far more famous and nine years older Little Mermaid at Copenhagen's Langelinie prommendade.