History Main / SirensAreMermaids

* In the HarryPotter series, sirens are given as a Greek race of merpeople (noted as being the inspiration for their common artistic depiction, as compared to the "[[strike:less beautiful]] ugly" Irish and Scottish merpeople seen in the series), and all merpeople are noted to share a common love of music. In ''GobletOfFire'', the second task of the Triwizard Tournament requires deciphering a clue given in Mermish song.

While Homer's sirens were certainly not mermaids, the siren as mermaid was well-established in the medieval bestiary, as witnessed by its appearance in literature in a text like Thomas Hoccleve's early fifteenth century text, ''La Male Regle'', which at lines 233 ff. speaks of mermaids singing men to their deaths, ''as old books tell us''. Note also that the Latin word "siren" has descended into almost every modern Romance language as the word for "siren" and "mermaid" (e.g. "sirène" in French), and not "bird-person," implying that the drift in meaning occurred many centuries prior to the earlier Latin bestiaries in which Hoccleve found reference to the mermaid-siren. Therefore modern media that depict sirens as mermaids are not making a [[SadlyMythtaken "mistake"]], but following a different received tradition.

-->''I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each.''\\
--'''TSEliot'''

[[BilingualBonus Note that in some languages]], the word for mermaid and siren is the same. French is an example, with the word sirène.

Subtrope of SadlyMythtaken. Compare OurMermaidsAreDifferent.

AsYouKnow, [[OurMermaidsAreDifferent mermaids]], like [[OurMonstersAreDifferent all fictional creatures]], can vary in their portrayal from work to work. This is especially {{egregious}} with mermaids, due to the idea of a mythical fish-woman being [[OlderThanDirt such an old one]].

However, despite all the differences in mermaid portrayals, they seem to have one thing in common. For some reason, mermaids tend to be called [[EnthrallingSiren sirens]], and given the ability to sing phenomenally well, to the point of leading unsuspecting people to their doom. Apparently someone DidNotDoTheResearch at some point, as [[SadlyMythtaken mermaids and sirens are completely different creatures]]. Mermaids have pretty much always been creatures that appear to be one part fish and one part human. Sirens, on the other hand, are described in their [[ClassicalMythology original source material]] as coastal dwelling creatures that are part human, part ''bird''. The moniker [[MonsterMash "seagull harpy"]] would probably be a more apt description than mermaid. Despite this, sirens and mermaids are almost always confused.

[[BilingualBonus Note that in some languages]], the word for mermaid and siren is the same. French is an example, with the word sirène. Considering the history between the Enligsh and the French languages and the fact that EverythingSoundsSexierInFrench might go a long way to explain the confusion in English.

[[AC:ComicBooks]]
* Amusingly averted in ''LeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen'', where Sirens are actually a man-eating descendant of the Phorusrhacos that use mimicry to fool drunken sailors into getting close enough to eat. [[PollyWantsAMicrophone Like many birds, they can imitate human voices]] and they have markings on their beaks that look like human faces, plumage like flowing, blonde hair and ornamentation on their chests resembling a woman's breasts.

* Averted in the ''[[PercyJacksonAndTheOlympians Percy Jackson series]]''. Sirens are portrayed in a tweaked version of their GreekMythology incarnation, as [[HighOctaneNightmareFuel horrible giant condor-like creatures with long necks and the heads of women, faces dripping with the remains of their victims]].

[[BilingualBonus Note that in some languages]], the word for mermaid and siren is the same. French is an example, with the word sirène. Considering the history between the Enligsh and the French languages and the fact that EverythingSoundsSeixerInFrench might go a long way to explain the confusion in English.

[[BilingualBonus Note that in some languages]], the word for mermaid and siren is the same.

[[AC:{{TruthInTelevision}}]]
* Manatees and dugongs, the sea-faring mammals are often thought to be the inspiration for mermaid myth. Those sailors were out to sea for far too long.
* Sirenidae -- a family of salamanders that lack backlimbs. those
* The mix up might derive from the german speaking culture, there are creatures called nixe when female and nix/nex when male. They are fish people -- but can be also human like or, rarely, bird like. Nix are usual boring watermen and ugly, while Nixes are mischievous girls who like to lure men and children to their deaths using their voice or tricks.
* A birth defect concerning the legs fused together like a mermaid is called sirenomelia.

However, despite all the differences in mermaid portrayals, they seem to have one thing in common. For some reason, mermaids tend to be called [[OurSirensAreLouder sirens]], and given the ability to sing phenomenally well, to the point of leading unsuspecting people to their doom. Apparently someone DidNotDoTheResearch at some point, as [[SadlyMythtaken mermaids and sirens are completely different creatures]]. Mermaids have pretty much always been creatures that appear to be one part fish and one part human. Sirens, on the other hand, are described in their [[ClassicalMythology original source material]] as coastal dwelling creatures that are part human, part ''bird''. The moniker [[MonsterMash "seagull harpy"]] would probably be a more apt description than mermaid. Despite this, sirens and mermaids are almost always confused.

* Sailor Aluminum Seiren is named for a Siren but is clearly filled with mermaid influences, and comes from Planet Mermaid. An Overall blue color scheme, a seashell charm on her choker, her attack, Galactia Tsunami, is clearly water based (Except in the amine where it's just her throwing juice boxes and water bottles). Her anime civilian name, Reiko Aya, even contains a pun on Mermaid.

* In the animated film {{Coraline}}, The Other Spink sings the line "I'm known as the siren of all seven seas," while dressed as a mermaid.

* In the AnitaBlake series, sirens are described as super-powerful mermaids, able to control even their own kind with the power of their voices.

* Subverted in an episode of H2O: Just Add Water: Cleo is normally a terrible singer, but during one of the episodes, she comes under the influence of the full moon, she briefly becomes a siren, gaining a singing voice that hypnotizes all the teenage boys in the area. Also, she did not transform into mermaid form on contact with water like usual while she was a siren.

* In TheDragonWarsSaga, the chief songstress of the merfolk clan encountered early on is named Sirin and the mermaids have command of some kind of vocal music.

* Manatees and dugongs, the sea-faring mammals often thought to be the inspiration for mermaid myths, are part of the order Sirenia.
** Sirenidae is a family of salamanders that lack backlimbs, making them more akin to mermaids than to sirens.
* The mix up might derive (maybe) from the german speaking culture, there are creatures called nixe (female) and nix/nex (male). Those are (mostly) fish people (but can be also human like or rarely bird like). Nix are usual boring watermen and ugly, while Nixes are mischievous girls who like to lure men and children to their deaths using their voice or tricks.
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--TSEliot

-->''And you sang, "Sail to me, sail to me,''
-->''Let me enfold you,''
-->''Here I am, here I am''
-->''Waiting to hold you"''
-->'''Tim Buckley''', "Song to the Siren" (later CoveredUp by ThisMortalCoil)

However, despite all the differences in mermaid portrayals, they seem to have one thing in common. For some reason, mermaids tend to be called sirens, and given the ability to sing phenomenally well, to the point of leading unsuspecting people to their doom. Apparently someone DidNotDoTheResearch at some point, as [[SadlyMythtaken mermaids and sirens are completely different creatures]]. Mermaids have pretty much always been creatures that appear to be one part fish and one part human. Sirens, on the other hand, are described in their [[ClassicalMythology original source material]] as coastal dwelling creatures that are part human, part ''bird''. The moniker [[MonsterMash "seagull harpy"]] would probably be a more apt description than mermaid. Despite this, sirens and mermaids are almost always confused.

* PiersAnthony's ''{{Xanth}}'' novel ''TheSourceOfMagic''. The Siren is a mermaid with a voice that lures all men who hear it to her.

* [[{{Twilight}} Stephenie Meyer's]] latest book is stated to be about sirens. Except, its supposed to be about [[OurMermaidsAreDifferent mermaids]].
** Not just any mermaids, but ''[[TimeTravel time travelling]]'' ones. [[WallBanger Head, meet wall]].
*** This troper would be psyched for NinjaPirateZombieRobot awesomeness if someone who wasn't Stephenie Meyer was writing it.
*** This Troper heard the video where she supposedly said that; while she was talking a bit fast and some viewers seem to have misheard, she said possible book ideas involve one about time travel and one about mermaids, not one about time-traveling mermaids. (...At least, I think.)

* In {{Disney}}'s ''TheLittleMermaid'', Ariel has a beautiful singing voice, to the point where the BigBad's price for changing her into a human is her beautiful voice. However, this is taken from the original story.
**In all fairness, nearly ALL animated Disney characters seem to have beautiful singing voices, and at Broadway level (Seems odd that many of them are [[{{Disney/Aladdin}} on the streets]] or [[{{Cinderella}} servants]] without a more appropriate job)