Irish Merrows

    In Irish folklore, Merrows are one of the two types of “sea-fairies” (also known as mermaids). Merrow are similar to the other type of “sea-fairies,” Sirens, but they are less known for their violent tendencies and more known for their mellow nature. They aren’t always nice and can have ill intentions of alluring humans to death, but they aren’t nearly as malicious as Sirens are. Merrows are originally from ancient Celtic and Irish mythology. The name “Merrow” comes from the Gaelic word “Muir” which means the sea and “Oigh” which means a young woman. Merrows are described as human-like creatures with an abundance of beauty, grace, and alluring properties. While they are similar to humans, Merrows aren’t entirely human. They are known to be a breath-takingly beautiful woman from the waist up, but below the waist, they have a scaled fish-like tail. What makes Merrows so unique compared to other types of mermaids in mythology is their ability to shapeshift into a human to find a human mate and their strong association with marriage in the tales written about them. Merrows have been known to marry humans and raise happy families on land, but they are said to always long to return to the sea. In most of the legends about Merrows, the men who wish to marry them have to hide their Cohuleen Druith forever, or she will leave him and go back to the sea if she finds it. You see they normally possess a Cohuleen Druith which is a garment like a cap or a comb that allows them to shift from a human and back into a mermaid. The tales of Merrows marrying humans are riddled with bittersweet romances. The humans in their stories normally find and hide their Cohuleen Druiths, effectively binding the Merrows to their human spouses. Depending on the story, it can end there or it can end with the merrow finding her cap or comb and fleeing back into the sea after being drawn to it for so long. 


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