Mermaid

A mermaid is a mythical sea-creature, with the upper parts of a human female and the lower parts of a fish. The male equivalent is a merman and collectively they are known as merfolk.

## Explanations for Mermaids[edit]

Mermaid sightings are often from afar. It is commonly believed that the ancient mariners who saw mermaids saw manatees, sea cows, sea lions or another marine creature due to sailing conditions at the time. However, the mermaid myth has expanded to modern times.

## Mermaids in Popular Culture[edit]

* A Disney film called The Little Mermaid was released in 1989 and was supposedly responsible for rejuvenating Disney. The film involved a mermaid who, unhappy with her current surroundings, fell in love with a human. A prequel TV series, sequel and a prequel film have been released since. In addition, a live action remake of the film, written by Lin-Manuel Miranda (who previously wrote Hamilton), is in the works, with Halle Bailey as Ariel.
* In Spongebob Squarepants, King Neptune is depicted as a merman. In The Spongebob Squarepants Movie, it is revealed that Neptune has a mermaid daughter named Mindy. Although in the TV show, Neptune has a son named Triton, while Mindy is not once mentioned, and only had a short cameo in the 20th anniversary special.
* In the video game Zoo Tycoon's expansion pack Marine Mania, to get a mermaid, place a mermaid statue in a premade tank. A mermaid will come to life and live in said tank.