Welcome to another edition of the a to z blog challenge. My theme this year is “Living in a Mermaid World.” Today is sponsored by the letter J so I am exploring mermaid legends from Jamaica.
The River Mumma of Jamaica is a mermaid who acts as the guardian the of fresh water rivers in Jamaica. She sometimes can be seen sitting on a rock in the river combing her long black hair with a golden comb. Legends say that all the fish in the rivers are her children and should not be caught or else she will cause the river to dry up.
It is believed that stories about River Mumma are closely related to the West African oral mermaid tales that were brought by slaves to Jamaica.
One of the most interesting legends is River Mumma and the Golden Table. This legend tells of a golden table that the Spaniards left hidden at the bottom of the river. The River Mumma guards the table. Occasionally the table rises slowly to the surface of the river and greedy people try to steal. You can read a version of this Jamaican folktale here.
You might enjoy reading The Mystery of the Golden Table by Suzanne Francis Brown. It was published in Jamaica in by Arawak publications
Don’t you think it is interesting how many mermaid tales have their roots in other places?
That’s quite an odd legend. It’s be intersting to know how it was born.
@JazzFeathers
The Old Shelter – Jazz Age Jazz
I’m amazed at how many mermaid tales there are worldwide. i love this version from Jamaica!
Cheers – Ellen | http://thecynicalsailor.blogspot.com/2016/04/j-is-for-jetty-nancy-drew-investigates.html
Very interesting. I have put the book on my TBR list which is growing bigger every day.
Shalom,
Patricia @ EverythingMustChange
This is one is cool, too. I imagine the golden comb. I like the rising table too! You rock with this challenge, Claire.
that is SOOOOOO interesting! i had a first grader once who was learning to spell. her family went on vacation and in her journal entry she wrote that they went to Ja make a. it took me a long while to figure out what she was spelling. It still makes me chuckle to this day. She spelled it how it sounded: Ja make (silent e) ah and all the while i was like, Ja ma ke ah?
grat theme Claire!