Have you ever heard of mermaids? A few years ago, a museum in Denmark played a funny trick. They said they found a real mermaid skeleton and were going to show it in their museum. But guess what? It was just a joke for April Fool’s Day! Some people were confused because they thought mermaids were just made-up creatures.
Henry and Joanie had a question about mermaids. They asked, “Are mermaids real?” Mermaids and mermen appear in many stories and movies. You might know Ariel and King Triton from “The Little Mermaid” or the Merpeople from “Harry Potter.” But are there real mermaids out there?
A long time ago, people believed mermaids were real. They thought they found mermaid skeletons on beaches and heard stories from sailors who claimed to see mermaids swimming in the ocean. But were these sailors just mistaken?
In ancient times, the ocean was a big mystery. Sailors saw many animals like whales, sharks, and dolphins. But sometimes, they saw something they didn’t recognize. Maybe it was a creature swimming far away or something seen through fog. It might have looked like a tail or an arm in the water, or even a face that seemed human.
Could these sailors have seen something like a mermaid? Scientists think they might have seen animals like dugongs or manatees. These creatures have flat tails and flippers that look a bit like arms. From a distance, especially at night, they might have looked like mermaids.
People from different parts of the world have their own mermaid stories. In Australia, there are tales of Yawkyawks with green seaweed hair. In Japan, people talked about Ningyo, creatures with human heads and fish-like bodies. In Europe, there were stories of blue mermen who challenged sailors to rhyming contests.
It’s interesting that people from different places all described creatures similar to mermaids. But maybe they were just seeing animals like dugongs and mistaking them for mermaids.
Today, we know that mermaids don’t exist in real life. Scientists have never found a creature that’s half one animal and half another. But there is something like a “merdog.” Have you heard of sea lions? They have long snouts, sharp claws, and even bark like dogs! Sea lions are part of the caniform group, which means “dog-like.” They are the closest thing to a real-life merdog.
So, while mermaids are fun to imagine, they aren’t real. But the ocean is full of amazing creatures that inspire stories and legends. Keep asking questions and exploring the mysteries around us. Who knows what you’ll discover next!
Create Your Own Mermaid Story: Imagine you are a sailor who thinks they’ve seen a mermaid. Write a short story or draw a picture about your adventure. What did the mermaid look like? What did you do when you saw it? Share your story or drawing with your classmates and see how everyone’s mermaid is different!
Mermaid or Marine Animal? Go on a “Mermaid Hunt” in your local library or online with the help of an adult. Find pictures of animals like dugongs, manatees, and sea lions. Compare these animals to the mermaids in stories. What features do they share? How are they different? Create a chart to show your findings.
Mermaid Myths Around the World: With a globe or a world map, find the countries mentioned in the article: Australia, Japan, and Europe. Learn a little bit about the mermaid stories from these places. Can you find any other countries with mermaid legends? Share a new mermaid story from a different culture with your class.
Here’s a sanitized version of the transcript:
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(phone ringing and chimes) – Hi, it’s Doug. A few years ago, The Natural History Museum of Denmark announced that they had made an important discovery. They claimed to have found the skeleton of a real-life mermaid and were even going to display it in the museum. Some people were confused. “Wait a second, aren’t mermaids supposed to be fictional? Is this even real?” It turns out it wasn’t. It was April Fool’s Day, and the museum was just joking.
Someone named Henry and Joanie have a question about mermaids. Let’s give them a call now. (phone rings and chimes) – Hi, Doug? – Hi, Henry and Joanie? – I have a question for you. Are mermaids real? – Oh, that’s a great question. Mermaids and mermen are found in all kinds of stories and movies. There are friendly ones like Ariel and King Triton in “The Little Mermaid” and scary-looking ones like the Merpeople in “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.” Images of mermaids can be seen all over the place.
Now, the mermaids we watch on TV or read about in books are just fictional, but what about real mermaids? Do they exist? A long time ago, many people thought, “Yes.” Some ancient texts described merpeople as real creatures, alongside dolphins, whales, and fish. They believed they had found skeletons of mermaids on beaches, plus there were countless stories from sailors who claimed to have seen merpeople swimming in the ocean.
Were these sailors just mistaken? Or did they really see something? Before I continue, I’m curious. What do you think the sailors from long ago really saw? Now would be a good time to pause the video and discuss.
Okay, you ready? One thing you might find surprising is that these aren’t the only mermaid stories told by people in ancient times. For example, the first Australians told stories of mermaids called the Yawkyawks with green seaweed hair. In ancient Japan, people spoke of Ningyo, creatures with human heads and fish-like bodies, as long as a school bus. In ancient Europe, there were even tales of blue mermen with gray beards who would challenge sailors to a rhyming contest. If the captain could rhyme better than the merman, the merman would let the ship pass.
What’s especially interesting about these mermaid stories is that they come from all around the world, not just one place. How is it possible that people from completely different regions were all describing something similar? They must have seen something at least somewhat like a mermaid, right?
Well, maybe. But some experts suggest another possible explanation. A long time ago, the ocean was a complete mystery. It was deep and dark, and no one knew what was down there. Anyone sailing on boats would have seen animals like whales, sharks, and dolphins pop up out of the water, and they recognized those because they saw them often. But occasionally, they might have seen a creature they didn’t recognize—something swimming far away, or something seen through fog, or at night. They might have seen a tail moving in the water or an arm popping up from a wave, or maybe a face that almost looked human.
What could this be? Could there be half-fish, half-human creatures living in the water? Though it seemed like a mermaid to them, could it have been something like this? Look closely. You see the flat tail? It almost looks like a mermaid’s, right? And check out those front flippers. They almost look like arms. This is a dugong, or you might be familiar with our cousin, the manatee. Scientists think that the shape of creatures like these might have inspired the idea of merpeople.
In other words, people in ancient times might have mistaken animals like dugongs for being half-human, half-fish. Dugongs may not look exactly like mermaids, but imagine seeing them at night, or from a distance, or even with green seaweed wrapped around their heads. It would almost seem as if you were looking at a real-life mermaid with long green hair.
When people found skeletons of dugongs, they were convinced. Look closely. Notice the end of the arms? A dugong has bones that look kind of like fingers. And check out the bones in its tail; they resemble a mermaid’s. When people found these skeletons, they displayed them in places like circuses and museums. “Mermaids were real,” they must have thought, and now they finally had proof.
Today, it’s clear that merpeople don’t exist in real life. If they did, many more people would have seen them. For example, people would have posted videos of them. Human beings have been studying animals on land and in the ocean for a long time, and we’ve never found evidence of a creature that’s half one animal and half another.
But even though there may not be such things as mermaids in real life, believe it or not, there actually is something kind of like a merdog. Check this out. You see the long snout, the sharp claws? Look at its teeth. It does kind of look like a dog. In fact, it even has fur like a dog. And get this—it barks. (sea lion howling) This is a sea lion, and sea lions are part of the caniform group of mammals, which means dog-like. They aren’t closely related to whales or fish or anything else that lives in the ocean. When you’re looking at a sea lion, you’re really looking at a real-life relative of the dog family, one that lives in water. Sea lions are the closest thing there is to being a real-life merdog.
So in summary, we have no reason to believe mermaids exist in real life. In fact, scientists have never found a living creature that was half one animal and half a different kind of animal. People in ancient times might have thought merpeople were real because of the human-like traits of sea creatures like dugongs. That’s all for this week’s question. Thanks, Henry and Joanie, for asking it.
Now, for the next episode, I reached into my question jar and picked up three questions sent in to me that I’m thinking about answering next. When this video is done playing, you’ll get to vote on one. You can choose from: “When were shoelaces invented?” “What were the first computers like?” or “How does a refrigerator work?” So submit your vote when the video is over. I want to hear from all of you watching. There are mysteries all around us. Stay curious, and see you next week.
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This version removes any informal language and maintains a more neutral tone while preserving the content.
