So, you are telling me that more than eighty percent of the world’s ocean is unexplored and you want me to believe that mermaids are not real? Quite frankly, I don’t buy it—but let’s dive into this conspiracy theory.
A well-known fact is that throughout history, many sailors and boat dwellers have seen a human-like figure lurking beneath the surface of water. Although those figures were later proven as manatees, the setback has not stopped conspiracy theorists from believing. Many theorists have become intrigued with the concept of mermaids. They do not believe that they look like Ariel, but rather a human-like creature that lives in the depths of the ocean.
The earliest concept for a mermaid came from Syria, dating around 1000 BC. It is found in the myth of the goddess Atargatis, whose bottom half was turned into a fish after the gods found out about her beauty. Ever since then, mermaids have been portrayed in history such as the Greeks, with Poseidon and sirens, and the Romans with Neptune. Yet some claim to have real encounters with the mystical creatures, such as in 1403 when some girls rowing near the town of Edam saw a mermaid swimming in shallow waters. Another encounter was with John Smith in 1614, and even Christopher Columbus in 1493. Both were convinced that they saw mermaids on their voyages out at sea. With all the history surrounding mermaids and various encounters, it begs the question: Are mermaids real?
There are various theories, but I wanted to delve into those of the aquatic apes and manatees. The aquatic ape theory states that as primates evolved, the competition for food became harder and harder therefore some primates hunted on land whilst others hunted in the water. The theory continues to state that over time the humans that hunted in the water evolved and adapted to live in the water (mermaids). This theory can support many of our body characteristics such as the little body hair that helps us swim faster, the ability to hold our breaths underwater (longer than most animals), and our fingers shriveling up underwater to be able to grip things. Although this theory is quite viable, these characteristics can also hint at our past—like our fingers shrinking up, which can perhaps be because we had to catch fish with our bare hands. Yet, mermaid beliefs may argue that there is no technology today to search every corner, crack, and crevice of the ocean to confirm that mermaids do not exist. This is fair, but then another million questions pop up, like what ocean level would they live in, is the reason we have not seen them because their brains are as advanced as ours, and most importantly what scientific proof is there that they exist? Another theory is manatees. Many of the mermaid sightings happened a very long time ago when we did not know as much of the ocean or the world as we do today and perhaps what these men saw while at sea were nothing but manatees. If you saw one of these beautiful sea cows in a time when not much was known about the world, then you might too think back to the stories about mermaids that you heard as a child and believe them.
Overall, there is no scientific way currently to prove that mermaids are real or that they are not real, and therefore, whether you believe in these magical creatures is fully up to you.
Manatees that look like mermaids from afar.