Marine mythology includes sea monsters, deities, ghost ships, and sunken cities. Polytheistic groups with access to the sea create their own mythology. Examples include Greek and Roman gods, Inuit goddess Sedna, and Aztec goddess Atlacamani. Sea monsters like Leviathan and mermaids appear in multiple mythologies. Ghost ships like the Flying Dutchman and sunken cities like Atlantis are also common themes. Killing an albatross or being a Jonah are considered bad luck at sea.
There are many types of marine mythology. These range from mythological monsters to good and bad omens to sunken cities and ghost ships. Sea monsters perhaps make up the bulk of sea-related mythology, ranging from leviathans to mermaids. While the mythology of the sea is related to the mythology of water, it does not include any mythology related to water resources, lakes, ponds and rivers, only open seas and oceans with salt water.
Any polytheistic group with access to the sea has created a mythology of the sea. Often at the center of these mythologies were gods and goddesses. In Greek and Roman mythologies, deities such as Neptune and Poseidon were central to their myths. Another deity of the sea is Sedna of Inuit mythology, although her nature and her name vary from Inuit group to Inuit group. Other sea deities include Atlacamani, the goddess of ocean storms in Aztec mythology, and the Ainu god Repun Kamui.
Sea monsters also emerge over and over again in sea mythology. An example is Leviathan, which is a large sea monster synonymous with whales in modern Hebrew. Another example is the siren, who attracts men with her beautiful songs only because men’s ships are wrecked on the rocks. The mermaid is related to the mermaid, a half-human, half-fish creature, a symbol of both Warsaw and Copenhagen. Mermaid-like creatures appear in a number of marine mythologies including the Aycayia in Neo-Taino culture and the Jengu of Cameroon.
There are countless myths surrounding ghost ships. Some of them are more realistic than others. One of the most famous is the myth of the Flying Dutchman seen in the second and third films “Pirates of the Caribbean”. The Flying Dutchman is said to appear in storms as an omen of death. The Mary Celeste appeared to be a 19th-century attempt to create a ghost ship as she sailed unmanned to Spain with her cargo and stores intact, but not a soul aboard. There are other ghost ships in marine mythology including the Caleuche mythology of Chilota and Lady Lovibond.
Since Plato’s mention of Atlantis, there have been myths about underwater cities. These are both myths about lost civilizations and underwater cultures. The sunken city myth may be based on the fate of Heike, which sank at sea in 373 BC. Much energy has gone into finding Atlantis and other submerged cities.
There are a number of stories and folktales that fall under the umbrella of marine mythology. For example, killing an albatross, according to some sailors, is a sure sign of misfortune. Jonah is another myth related to the sea, where a person who brings bad luck to a ship is called Jonah.
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