Mermaid cake ideas

Examples – mermaid – Markdownish syntax for generating flowcharts, sequence diagrams, class diagrams, gantt charts and git graphs. What is a mermaid and what do they symbolise? Tales of mermaids date back to the first written accounts of humanity, but how much do we know about mermaid cake ideas mythical sea creatures?

A mermaid is a mythical sea-dwelling creature, often described as having the head and body of a woman and a fish’s tail below the waist. Stories of mermaids have existed for thousands of years and span cultures across the world – from coastal settlements in Ireland to the landlocked Karoo desert in South Africa. With such a rich and varied history, the symbol of the mermaid is as changeable as the sea itself. In some cultures, the mermaid signifies life and fertility within the ocean. In others, she embodies the destructive nature of the water, luring sailors to their deaths — serving as an omen for storms, unruly seas and disaster.

As these spirits or divinities stem from multiple African cultures with ancient roots, there is no singular characteristic to their identity. Mami Wata’s gender is fluid, meaning she can sometimes appear as a man or woman. The spirit is worshipped for both their benevolence in offering beauty, healing and wisdom, and as a way of warding off natural disasters. Following colonialism and the rise of the slave trade in the 1600s, the stories and beliefs of Mami Wata spread across the globe and remain an important source of spiritual connection with African communities seeking to reclaim their traditions and cultural identities.

Ancient Greece and Rome: Sirens and Mermaids The mermaids of Greek and Roman mythology are considerably close to the appearance and character of the European myths we think about today. Many ancient Greek myths equate sirens with mermaids. However, while they share many characteristics, they are now seen as two different entities. A famous Greek folktale claimed that Alexander the Great’s sister, Thessalonike was transformed into a mermaid upon her death in 295 BC and lived in the Aegean sea.

Whenever a ship passed, she would ask the sailors one question: “Is King Alexander alive? If the sailors answered correctly, declaring “He lives and reigns and conquers the world,” Thessalonike would allow the ship to continue on its journey. Any other answer was said to anger her, and she would conjure a storm and doom the vessel and its sailors to a death at sea. Eastern Europe: Rusalki Often translated as “mermaid,” the Rusalki are water nymphs of Slavic mythology. While initially regarded as benevolent spirits of fertility and agriculture, Rusalki gained a more sinister description in the 1800s. They were believed to be the ghosts of women who died violent deaths by drowning. In their anger and sorrow, the Rusalki now lured men and children to their watery graves.

Ireland – Merrows Female merrows, with their beauty and long green hair, resemble our traditional views of mermaids. Their counterpart, the male merrow is considered grotesque, cruel and more fish than man. The ruthless nature of the male merrow is why the creatures were said to have relationships with humans. In the Ramayana, the countries retellings of the Indian epic poem, one of the heroes, Hanuman attempts to build a bridge of stones across the sea.

His plans are hampered by Suvannamaccha who has been instructed to prevent the causeway’s completion. The two meet and fall in love and Suvannamaccha ends up helping Hanuman finishing the path. The mermaid is now seen as a herald of good luck and her figure is depicted in charms, streamers and icons throughout Cambodia, Thailand and Lao. Scottish Isles and Scotland – Selkie While not exactly “fishy” the Scottish selkie has often been connected to mermaid mythology. These shape-shifting creatures live as seals while in the sea and transform into humans while on land. In Gaelic stories, they are often described as “maighdean-mhara” meaning “maiden of the sea.

In their stories, selkies are uncertain creatures. There are stories of them tempting people into the water, but others where they cast off their seal skins, marry humans and begin families. These tales usually end in tragedy when the selkie returns to the oceans, with or without their loved ones. Western Europe: Melusine A feminine spirit found in many medieval European folktales, the Melusine has a serpent or fish’s tail and sometimes has wings. Hungary, France and Germany all have different accounts of Melusine. The most famous legend describes her as a willful girl who tries to get revenge on her human father on behalf of her fairy mother, only to be punished by her mother with a tail. More recently, the figure of the mermaid was adopted by the transgender youth network, Mermaids UK.

The symbol of the mermaid provides a potent symbol to the community due to the mermaid’s ability to transform. With the absence of physical genitalia, the sex of the mermaid is irrelevant. Person of the Sea is a sculpture by Eve Shepherd. Commissioned by Royal Museums Greenwich, the sculpture was created after Shepherd spent two years working with trans and gender diverse youth at Mermaids UK. What are the origins of mermaids?

How far into humanity’s past, our stories of mermaids reach is unknown — possibly since we first began finding creatures in the sea. Archaeologists have found accounts in Mesopotamian mythology of Oannes, a male fish-god from over five thousand years ago. One of the earliest mermaid legends appeared in Syria around 1000 BC when the goddess Atargatis dove into a lake to take the form of a fish. As the gods there would not allow her to give up her great beauty, only her bottom half became a fish, and she kept her top half in human form. Archaeologists have found Atargatis’ figure on ancient temples, statues and coins. While the early Britons such as the celts have folktales of mermaids, no illustrations have been uncovered.

The earliest depiction of a mermaid in England can be found in Norman chapel in Durham Castle, built around 1078 by Saxon stonemasons. It is a strange carving, with the mermaid found alongside two leopards and several hunting scenes. Historians believe the mermaid symbolises the temptations of the soul. In sailor folklore, mermaids represent both good fortune and disaster.