#nonbinary mermaid

[avoyagetoarcturus]

Singer Maya Karli inspired by their "CATCH" music video with a New England twist for their Siren Summer art contest on instagram. 🌊

[vaelyane]

Here are some process steps for this specific piece! A lot more happened in-between, but they look neat in a little square like this. :) I may edit a little video of the process someday, if I find the courage... it'll be a glorified GIF, as usual. 🥲 Mermay is almost over! I'm always sad to see it go. I love seeing lots of merfolk swim around my dash every year.

[shirecorn]

A goliath grouper gives a lecture on the intersection of mermaid and human culture.

Mermaids are not a monolith. Their populations are as diverse and distinct as our own, if not moreso. We are only one species, we bleed the same blood, we burn in the same sun (selkies are regarded as an ethnicity for most purposes as they intersect often with humans)

Most pelagic mermaids have at least some capacity to mimic the secondary sex characteristics of human females; left over from the days when they preyed on sailors by luring them in with appearance and song. This is why they are referred to as mer “maids” despite equal numbers of each sex joining the frenzy.

One cannot summarize “mermaid gender” as there is far too much variation between and within species.

Such could be the subject of an entire course, perhaps multiple courses, on that topic alone. As a human scholar and a generalist, it’s not my place to lead such a course when mermaids have been teaching and living among us for centuries now.

For short notes, however, an exploration of coastal mermaid culture will suffice. Most of the coastal populations with intersecting species grow up learning both land and sea common, or their own plus their neighbor’s native language.

In sea common, personal pronouns are not gendered as reproductive sex only matters to species with extreme sexual dimorphism. Sailors have referred to them with feminine pronouns since the first sighting, so those translating their sea common pronoun into land common will often stick with feminine pronouns as the default. This choice has no bearing whatsoever on mermaid’s reproductive sex, nor their preferred roles in society.

Those who immerse themselves in human culture beyond trade will more often than not change their human form to pick up traits that they like, completely disregarding where those traits are “supposed” to be. Their pronoun choices are just as varied and many choose to be referred to in land common’s neutral pronoun, which is often easy for human’s to grasp as a mermaid who is not displaying their faux “breast” pouches is rather androgynous.

In blended cultures, mermaids will sometimes bring “gendered” pronouns into their societies, but it is very rare that these pronouns have anything to do with reproductive sex, or even what a human would call “presentation.”

In return, mermaid culture influences nearby humans to be less restrictive with assigning pronouns and gender roles. Inland visitors are often greeted with a pronoun inquiry by human and mermaids alike. This is extremely common in blended cities.

This is, of course, only the most frequent effect the common languages have on each other. Along the more southern coasts, humans end up removing gender from their language entirely. It’s a very welcoming system.

Inland countries would do well to learn a thing or two from mermaids. Perhaps the advent of magic assisted transportation will help connect us.

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In summary, all mermaids used to consistently imitate feminine human traits, but these days adopt whatever each individual wants. A mermaid’s reproductive sex has no bearing on their humanoid presentation or pronoun choices.

[peridot-the-kitten]

Finally after YEARS of being super into mermaids I have done something for MerMay!!! I did a revamp of my old mersona from when I was younger!

This was very very fun to draw

Reblogs > likes

[atgranger]

So I did a thing: a mermaid scene only using the colours of the nonbinary flag

Please do NOT repost or publish to any other sites!

[mabelpuppy13]

Welp it’s not professional but seeing as I’ve been up since 3 am I made my own non-binary seahorse mermaid. It’s not great, I’ll probably redraw... it looks like a kids drawing tbh! No judgeys!!!!! But I’m happy.... and tired but unable to sleep *shrugs* oh well. Enjoy enbies!!

[dancing-heart-pony]

Me for Mermay 💜🧜🏻‍♂️

[tigercookie102]

The World of Azoz: Mermaids

Azoz is a world filled with many mythical creatures of terrifying and charming proportions. Creatures of the land, sky, and sea. All with their own way of life. Today we will be diving beneath the waves to see the mermaids and how they live.

Government and Society

The mermaids do not have any formal government. They live in what they call units. These are town like places that are spread out through the ocean. They govern their units together, creating a unit council. Only in times of great danger, like a war, do they elect a leader. Once the crisis is over, the leader steps down and the unit council is back in charge.

Units are usually made up of various numbers of members from 100 to 1000. Units are rather peaceful. Each unit is named after a sea creature or plant. But each unit operates differently in different aspects. Some may trade with other units, some may not. There are a small number of units that have become city like and have become corrupted. These large units have leaders rather than the council. These city units have strayed from the original unit design.

Families, Sexuality, Reproduction

Mermaids in this world do not have genders. They are nonbinary. Each mermaid is able to lay eggs or fertilize them, but they don't choose who does what. So a mermaid who may use male pronouns can end up laying eggs. And some mermaids use gender pronouns.

Mermaids are able to lay eggs starting at 3 eggs to 10 at the same time. But not every egg will survive and hatch. Some eggs might even be empty.

Raising children vary from each unit but they all contribute to raising them. How they do that is different for each unit. For example, Unit Dolphin may assign a couple a few guppies (baby mermaids, freshly hatched) to care for. But Unit Coral may have all the guppies that were laid and hatch around the same time raised together in one group called a nest. Each nest will have an older couple or a few older couples in charge of them. Nest siblings will remain together until of age to be on their own. Many will remain together, even forming a couple.

Couples must apply to the unit council during the weekly or biweekly meetings to have eggs. This is for population control due mermaids laying many eggs. Mermaids do have birth control that each member of the couple will take. If they are approved to have eggs then they have eggs but the eggs are handed over to the unit to deal with as mentioned above. It's very rare for a couple to raise a guppy from one of their own eggs.

Couples are usually made of two mermaids, though it's not uncommon for there to be more in the couple. Mermaids do not have any formal marriage. If two, or more, mermaids really love each other and want to remain together, they must tell the unit during the unit meetings to make it official. After that they can begin to live together. They must wait a year before applying to have eggs.

Economy and Diet

The mermaids' diet mainly consists of plants. They do occasionally will eat small fish, such has krill, shrimp, etc etc. They will not eat anything eat anything bigger than them or could kill them. That is not only considered stupid but taboo.

The economy is farming and trading. Small units will grow various sea plants and trade with other units. They will also collect pretty things, like shells, pearls, and anything from the land or sky folk. The small units will trade these things with the city units for food.

Units that closer to shore have the most easy time collecting the pretty things from the world above.

Children are raised from hatching to be able to fill any role they wish to take on once they are older. The only exception are the priests since they hand picked to be priests of Azurine.

Biology

Mermaids are more fish than human. Each mermaid has different tails based on different fish. Some may have a dolph tail or a shark tail, or even a whale tail. Different mermaids with have different amounts of fins and shape of fins. If a mermaid has a dolphin, whale, or shark tail, they will likely have a dorsal fin on their back.

Mermaids who have scales can have scales all over their body. Sometimes mermaids will be born without hair and could have scales on their head. Colours vary too. And yes, mermaids can have tentacles. If they do, they might be able to squirt out ink.

Their gills are found on the side of their upper torso where the lungs are. When they go above water then their body will automatically switch how they breathe. Mermaids do not nurse children since they lay eggs. They are flat chested and don't have nipples. And they have fish parts. If a mermaid is given legs by a mage or another magick user, they won't have any private parts.

Relationships with Others

Mermaids are one of the most peaceful creatures in Azoz. They will only defend themselves if they are attacked. In recent times, since mermaid hunting became banned, they had no reason to protect themselves from the land and sky folk.

Their relationships with the land and sky folk weren't always the best. Many would hunt and kill mermaids for their scales. But now you can just trade with the mermaids and get the scales that they have shed.

Units that are closer to land have better relations with the land and sky folk since it's easier for them to trade. Those units will trade the pretty things they traded for with the units that are farther away from land for food. Units that are far away from land will trade with sky folk since the sky folk can fly above the water.

Trade is something very valuable to mermaids and is important to their culture. As long as you have some to give them, they will trade with you.

Religion

Mermaids don't have any formal religion. They do believe in the god (or goddess for some) of the Waves, Azurine. They are the patriarch of mermaids and the one true leader. Azurine may be referred to as god or goddess of Waves, but they are also god of trade, peace, and all sea creatures. Mermaids respect Azurine and their creations that they will only eat fish when called for. Mermaids respect all creatures of the sea.

Azurine's priests are raised from hatching to fill the role. They are taught the way of Azurine and how to help their units to the fullest extent of Azurine's powers. Priests of Azurine are hatched with magical abilities that can only be activated by a fully trained priest. Fully trained priests are able to sense these abilities in newly hatched guppies.

Extra Information

Kids from the same parents will know who their birth siblings are but won't know who their birth parents are

There are freshwater mermaids. (More info on a separate post)

Couples who are in charge of nests are called nest-parents

Feel free to send me questions and I'll answer them! I'm hoping to add some drawings to this post at some point.