Includes bibliographical references (pages 299-319) and index.

Water deities and sirens from olden times. Oannes ; Kaliya, the snake ; Odysseus and the sirens ; The tuna (Eel) of Lake Vaihiria -- Mermaids and other merbeings in Europe. Merfolk in the waters of Greenland and Iceland ; The marvels of the waters about Greenland ; The Merman ; Two mermaids and a selkie from the Scottish Highlands ; The mermaid of Kessock ; The grey selchie of Sule Skerrie ; The mermaid’s grave ; A seal woman or maiden of the sea from Ireland ; Tom Moore and the seal woman ; Dangerous mermaids in two child ballads ; Clark Colven, Child 42A ; The mermaid, Child 289B ; A Bavarian freshwater merman ; In the jaws of the merman ; A freshwater mermaid in Grimms’ Fairy Tales ; The Nixie in the pond ; Three Estonian water spirits ; Three tales (untitled) ; Two Greek mermaids ; New tunes ; The mermaid ; Merfolk from the south of Italy ; A mermaid’s story ; Cola Pesce ; The sailor and the mermaid of the sea -- Literary tales. Legend of Melusina ; Fortunio and the siren ; The day after the wedding, from Undine ; The little mermaid ; The fisherman and his soul ; The golden mermaid ; A mermaid’s tears ; Abyssus Abyssum Invocat --

Merfolk and water spirits across the globe. African mermaids and other water spirits ; Aganju and Yemaja ; Merfolk in The thousand and one nights ; Julnar the mermaid and her son Badar Basim of Persia ; A Persian sea fairy ; The sea fairy ; Three Khasi Narratives about water spirits ; About K—, the River goddess who exists in Jaintia Hills ; How water tied a covenant with man and the divine nature of water ; About a Puri enchantment ; A mer-wife in the Indian Ocean ; Shoan, a Nicobar tale ; A hairy Chinese mermaid ; Mermaids ; Mermaids from Japan ; The mermaid ; Yao Bikuni ; Water spirits of the Philippines ; The mermaid queen ; The Litao and Serena ; The American and the Sirena of Amburayan ; A mermaid in Mabini ; Mermaid ; A mer-wife in Northern Australia ; Karukayn (mermaids) ; A Chamorro girl becomes a mermaid ; Sirena ; The Feejee Mermaid hoax ; The mermaid ; Mermaids and Mo’o of Hawai’i ; The mermaid of Honokawailani Pond ; Kalamainuʻu, the moʻo who seduced Punaʻaikoaʻe ; Water beings of South America ; The fisherman’s water-jug and potato ; Oiára, The water-maidens ; The Pincoya ; The mermaids ; African water spirits in the Caribbean ; Ti Jeanne ; Maman dlo’s gift ; Water beings of indigenous North America ; The horned serpent runs away with a girl who is rescued by the thunderer ; Of the woman who loved a serpent that lived in a lake ; How two girls were changed to water-snakes ; Ne Hwas, the mermaid ; Legend of the fish women (mermaids) ; The woman who married a merman.