Amabie
legendary Japanese mermaid or merman
Amabie is a mermaid or merman with three legs in Japanese myths. It is believed that it will emerge from the sea and make prophecies about harvest or epidemic. [1]
Legend
changeIt is believed that an amabie appeared before a officer and gave a prophecy that good harvest will get for six years, if disease spread draw its picture and show to the people affected by disease and they will be cured. Believers argue that similar events are reported in different places also. [2]
COVID-19
change
During the COVID-19 pandemic, amabie become popular in Twitter in Japan. Manga artists (e.g., Chica Umino, Mari Okazaki and Toshinao Aoki) published their cartoon versions of amabie on social networks.[3][4]
References
change- ↑ Yumoto 1999, pp. 178–180
- ↑ 水木しげる [Mizuki, Shigeru] (1994). Zusetsu yōkai taizen 図説 日本妖怪大全. Kodansha +α bunko (in Japanese). Kodansha. p. 50. ISBN 978-4-06-256049-8.
- ↑ "Plague-predicting Japanese folklore creature resurfaces amid coronavirus chaos". Mainichi Daily News. 25 March 2020.
- ↑ Yumoto, Kōichi (湯本豪一), ed. (2001). Chihō hatsu Meiji yōkai nyūsu 地方発明治妖怪ニュース (in Japanese). Kashiwa Shobo. pp. 174–175. ISBN 978-4-7601-2089-5.
Related books
change- Murakami, Kenji (村上健司) [in Japanese], ed. (1999), Yōkai jiten 妖怪事典 [Dictionary of yōkai], 毎日新聞社, pp. 23–24, ISBN 978-4-620-31428-0
- Nagano, Eishun (長野栄俊) (2005), "Yogenjū amabiko—amabiko wo tegakari ni" 予言獣アマビコ考—「海彦」をてがかりに [Consideration on prophetic beast amabiko—using umibiko as hint] (PDF), Jakuetsu Kyōdoshi Kenkyū (若越郷土研究), 49 (2): 1–30, archived from the original (PDF) on 16 August 2016, retrieved 29 June 2016
- Yumoto, Kōichi (湯本豪一) [in Japanese] (2005). Nihon genjū zukan 日本幻獣図鑑 [Japan imaginary beasts illustrated] (in Japanese). Kawaide Shobo. ISBN 978-4-309-22431-2.
- Yumoto, Kōichi (湯本豪一) (1999). Meiji yōkai shimbun 明治妖怪新聞 [Meiji era yōkai newspaper] (in Japanese). Kashiwa Shobo. pp. 196–198. ISBN 978-4-7601-1785-7.