"MERMAID"

      A mermaid is a fish-like aquatic creature with a body that resembles a woman up to the waist but resembles a woman from the waist down. Mermaids are legendary beings. creatures that are both human and animal. Mermaids are frequently linked to perilous occurrences including floods, storms, shipwrecks, and drowning. Mermaids are depicted as being friendly and giving in other traditions (or occasionally even within the same tradition), giving gifts or falling in love with humans.

           Several societies around the world, including those in the Near East, Europe, Africa, and Asia, include mermaid tales in their folklore. The legend of a goddess named Atargatis who transformed into a mermaid out of guilt after accidentally killing her beloved initially surfaced in Ancient Assyria. The sea god Ea or Oannes, who is depicted as a merman, was worshipped by the Babylonians together with mermaids.

           According to Greek mythology, mermaids have a history of seducing careless sailors, and anyone who succumbs to their allure will perish. Greek mythology also links mermaids to sirens, as do the sirenians, an order of sea mammals that includes mermaids and sea oxen. Ancient sailors may have misjudged the morphology of these marine creatures in some of their accounts of encounters with mermaids. When exploring the Caribbean Sea, Christopher Columbus claimed to have encountered mermaids, and tales of sightings in Canada, Israel, and Zimbabwe in the 20th and 21st centuries also abound. The US National Ocean Service claimed in 2012 that no mermaid evidence had ever been discovered.

             In contemporary art and literature, mermaids have also gained popularity. One famous example is Hans Christian Andersen's novel "The Little Mermaid" (1836). Many adaptations of these literary works exist as operas, paintings, books, films, and comic books.

            Assyrian literature is where mermaid tales first appeared. The Goddess Atargatis, mother of the Assyrian queen Semiramis, is central to the narrative. Dewi Atargatis was murdered by the shepherd he fell in love with. He hurled himself into the lake and transformed into a fish despite his shame. Due to her goddess-like beauty, water was unable to entirely change her. However, in early representations, Atargatis was shown as a fish with a human head and hands, much like the Babylonian god Ea. Eventually, only half of his body changed into a fish—from the waist up in the form of a human, from the waist down in the form of a fish. Atargatis is regarded by the Greek nation as Derketo.

           According to Greek mythology, Thessaloniki, the sister of Alexander the Great, transformed into a mermaid after her death and roamed the Aegean Sea. On every ship he encountered, he would unfailingly enquire of the sailors, "Is Alexander still alive?" (Greek: "o o o"), and the appropriate response is: "Jesus still lives and reigns and conquers the world" (Greek: " "). He will be delighted by the response and will then calm the waters to save the passing ships. Any other response will enrage him, and he will then summon a storm and condemn the ship and its crew. 

           Other mythical beings with traits resembling mermaids are also said to exist in various nations, including the Mami Wata from west and central Africa, the Russalki (Rusalka) from Russia and Ukraine, the Merrow from Ireland and Scotland, and the Greek water nymphs Oceanid, Nereid, and Naiad. Melusine is a mermaid-like creature that is known from European folklore. It has two forked tails and can occasionally resemble a snake. Melusine appears as a woman up to the waist but changes into a fish from the waist down. Folklore in Japan holds that consuming mermaid flesh will grant a person immortality. Mermaids are said to be able to grant wishes in some European legends.

          Ancient mythical creatures known as mermaids are currently immensely popular due to their resurgence in modern fiction, where they frequently appear as endearing extraterrestrials.