Mermaids - 6 Minute English

Hello. This is 6 Minute English from

BBC Learning English. I'm Neil.

And I'm Georgina.

Do you believe in ghosts, Georgina?

Well, I've never actually seen one - not

even at Halloween.

How about dragons then?

Or fairies and elves?

Have you been reading fantasy

books, Neil? Lord of the Rings?

I have been reading a book, Georgina,

but not Lord of the Rings. My book is

about an amphibious creature - a creature

that lives both on land and in water.

Some kind of Frog-Man?

You've almost got the idea, Georgina,

but think - woman, not man;

and fish, not frog.

Half-woman, half-fish?

I've got it - a mermaid!

That's right! Mermaids are magical

creatures, half-woman, half-fish, that

feature in the myths and legends of

many cultures around the world.

Like the Sirens, whose seductive singing

shipwrecked Odysseus and his sailors

in ancient Greek mythology.

The Sirens are perhaps the most famous,

but certainly not the only, mermaids

we'll be hearing about. But before we dive into

the programme, it's time for my quiz question.

The book I've been reading was, of course,

The Little Mermaid.

Yes, I've seen the Disney movie.

The mermaid is called Ariel.

Right - but the movie was based on a fairy

tale written by Hans Christian Andersen.

It became so famous that a statue of the

Little Mermaid was built in the harbour

of Andersen s birthplace - but where?

Was it: a) Amsterdam, b) Copenhagen,

or c) Oslo?

I'm going to say b) Copenhagen.

OK, Georgina, I'll tell you the answer

later. Disney's defenceless mermaid,

Ariel, seems the total opposite to the

seductive, dangerous Sirens in the Odyssey.

In fact, descriptions and stories of

mermaids have always changed

from place to place.

One mermaid-like character found

across Africa and the Americas is

named, Mami Wata. Here's British

writer, Marcelle Mateki, talking about

the origins of this legend to BBC

World Service programme, The Forum:

Even the name, Mami Wata, which

is pidgin English for 'Mother Water', so

it's loosely translated from pidgin English

as 'the mother of water' and the

characteristics that are commonly

shared when speaking about Mami Wata

across the West African coast is that

this deity is the protector of

the water kingdom.

The name 'Mami Wata' comes from

Nigerian pidgin English - a language

which has developed from a mixture

of two languages and is used as

a way of communicating by people

who do not speak each

other's languages.

Marcelle says that 'Mami Wata'

means 'the mother of water'

when loosely translated - translated in

a way that carries over the basic ideas

but using words which may

not be so accurate.

Mami Wata is also described as

the protector of the water kingdom

and a deity - a god, goddess

or other divine being.

Another version of a mermaid-like

creatures, called Selkies, are found

in the remote Orkney Islands, north

of the Scottish mainland.

The Selkies can take human form

and marry men but every now and

then they return to their watery

kingdom under the sea.

Cristina Bacchilega is co-editor of

The Penguin Book of Mermaids.

According to her, these different

versions of mermaids share

something in common - they

force us to question our relationship

to water and other beings in the

natural world - and even to question

how we see ourselves.

Here's Cristina explaining more in

the BBC World Service's, The Forum:

The beings, not just mermaids but

Selkies and water deities and other

water spirits are often shape-shifters,

they have a certain kind of fluidity of being.

So do we approach this world with

humility, or do we really uphold a

kind of anthropocentric view,

human-centred view of life?

Mythical creatures are often

shape-shifters - they have the

power to change into a different

shape or form.

Moving between the sea and the

Earth, mermaids link two natural worlds.

Cristina thinks that, as humans,

we should approach them with humility.

Someone who has humility is not

proud and doesn't think they are

better than others.

Well, Neil, I don't think I m better

than a ghost, a water spirit

or a mermaid - it's just that I've

never seen one. But then again, I've

never seen electricity - and

I believe in that!

Maybe it would help if you

saw a statue of a mermaid,

if not the real thing?

Maybe, but where would I find one?

In my quiz question I asked

where you'd see the statue of

Hans Christian Andersen's

Little Mermaid. What did you

say, Georgina?

I guessed b) Copenhagen.

Which was the correct answer!

The Little Mermaid statue is found

in Andersen's birthplace of

Copenhagen. And it really is little - only

one-and-a-quarter metres high!

In this programme, we've been

talking about mermaids - mythical

half-woman, half-fish creatures

which are amphibious - live

both on land and in water.

In some cultures, mermaids

are deities - or goddesses. They

can also be shape-shifters - imaginary

creatures with the power to change

into different shapes.

One African mermaid is called,

Mami Wata, in pidgin English - a

mixture of English and local

languages which enables people

who do not share a common

language to communicate.

Mami Wata means 'Mother Water' - but

this is a loose translation - a

translation which carries over the

basic idea but using words

which may not be so accurate.

That s all for this programme, but

the next time you're near the sea,

keep an eye out for a splash in

the waves - you never know

what you might see!

Join us again soon for more

discussion and vocabulary here

at 6 Minute English. And follow us

on social media. Bye for now!

Bye!