Home › Glossary › Letter M

Merrow Maid

Folklore
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

An Irish mermaid with fish tail and comb, luring sailors or marrying humans, losing magic on land but gaining legs.

Detailed Definition
The Merrow, from selkie-like lore, sings enchanting songs, her cohuleen druith cap enabling sea return, symbolizing love's cross-world perils. Literature combs her in Lady Gregory's myths. In poetry, she surfaces in W.B. Yeats' "The Stolen Child"; poets lure with her for longing themes, ideal for sea ballads, where scales shimmer as desire's trap, enhancing Celtic romance with aquatic yearning.
Example
Example in poetry:
In Irish sea ballads, Merrow Maid's cap grants ocean freedom; W.B. Yeats' "The Little Mermaid" kin lures sailors; A selkie-like lament for Merrow's lost love; Folklore's comb treasures educate on enchantment; Modern feminist verse reclaims Merrow agency; Coastal odes sing her webbed grace.
Additional Notes
Merrow Maid, Gaelic mermaid with green hair, combs hold sea power; Yeats' "The Little Mermaid" lures; tips: leg transformation for hybrid love; related: selkie or undine; Irish context: coastal abductions, for maritime romance.
Also Known As
Irish mermaid sea woman aquatic bride
Skip to main content