N is for Nigeria and Noah!

Welcome to the letter N in the A to Z Blog Challenge. My theme this year is Living in a Mermaid World.

The stories of Mami Wata (Mother Water) originated in Nigeria. She is a mermaid with the upper body of a woman and the lower part that of a fish. She is described as beautiful, jealous, generous, and at times, deadly. She often carries beautiful combs and mirrors as she is fond of combing her long black hair. It is difficult to pinpoint the exact beginning of stories about Mami Wati but it is believed that these stories spread widely through Africa and then to the Caribbean and the Americas where they were incorporated into the existing  cultures. Lesiren in Haiti can be traced back to Mami Wati. (You can read my  post about her here.) Here is a chart showing the variations of Mami Wata:

State / Territory / Region	Name used
Benin	Mawu-Lisu (sometimes seen as an aspect of Mami Wata)
Brazil	Yemonjá (or Yemanjá; becoming popularly identified with the spirit)
Republic of the Congo	Kuitikuiti, Mboze, Makanga, Bunzi, Kambizi
Colombia	Mohana, Madre de agua (“Mother of Water”)
Cuba	Yemanya (or Yemaya; becoming popularly identified with the spirit)
Democratic Republic of the Congo	La Sirène (“The Mermaid”), Madame Poisson (“Mistress Fish”), Mamba Muntu
Dominica	Maman de l’Eau (“Mother of the Water”), Maman Dlo, Mama Glo
Guinea	Mamy Wata
French Guiana	Mamadilo
Ghana	Maame Water
Grenada	Mamadjo
Guadeloupe	Maman de l’Eau, Maman Dlo
Guyana	Watramama
South Africa	mamlambo zulu and NoMlambo Ndebele
Haiti	La Sirène, La Baleine (“The Whale”; a Rada loa that is a cross between La Sirène and Erzulie Balianne); (Erzulie and Simbi are also identified with La Sirène)
Jamaica	River Mama, River Maiden
Martinique	Lamanté (A pun on her dual nature as giver and devourer: L’Amanté, “The Lover” or La Manté, “The Mantis”), Manman Dlo
Netherlands Antilles	Maman de l’Eau, Maman Dlo
Nigeria	Mmuommiri (Igbo: Lady of the waters),[25] Obanamen or Oba n’amen {among the Benin of Edo State, means King/Queen of the waters,}, Yemoja{yoruba version}
Suriname	Watermama, Watramama
Trinidad and Tobago	Maman de l’Eau, Mama Dlo, Maman Dglo, Maman Dlo,[26] Mama Glow[27]

There are numerous stories about Mami Wata. In most she stalks men and women who are traveling in boats. She is also known to save children from drowning. She continues to be a source of inspiration to artists and writers in Africa as well as the Caribbean.

Mami Wata: Arts for Water Spirits in Africa and Its Diasporas by Henry John Drewel published by the Fowler Museum at UCLA

 

The Fish Husband retold by Mary Pope Osborne, Illustrated by Troy Howell in

Also from Nigeria is the legend of The Fish Husband in which a beautiful girl sees a very attractive man and falls immediately in love. When she tells him she’d like to be his wife he sadly explains that can’t be because he is actually a fish that can take on human shape. She doesn’t care and they are married without her parents knowledge. She prepares food for him and takes it to him in the river. Curious as to where his sister goes every day, her brother turns into a fly and follows her. He hears her sing a song and then sees a fish come out of the river and become a man. He rushes back to tell their parents. The furious parents send her to a relative’s home and go to the river. The brother sings the song and the fish husband appears and is killed by the girl’s father. When the daughter returns and learns of her husband’s death she throws herself into the water. Instead of drowning, she becomes a mermaid. Here is a link to the story retold by Mary Pope Osborne in Mermaid Tales from Around the World. 

 

Finally, in the Biblia Pauperum from the Biblia Sacra Germainica, printed in Nuremberg in 1483, there is an illustration of a mermaid, merman,and merdog swimming in the water outside of Noah’s Ark.

 

Isn’t it interesting to see how mermaid tales have traveled the globe?