Though there has never been any substantial proof that the creature known as a mermaid exists, it has not stopped the world from being fascinated by them since humans took to the sea.

The mythical half-fish, half-human merpeople have legends in all cultures across the globe.

No matter where the mermaid myths originated, the sheer majority of them make it clear that the mermaids call the deep sea their home.

If no provable scientific evidence for mermaids’ existence is available, then why should anyone care where they live?

Because the sheer prevalence of the lore of mermaids calls for us to suspend just a bit of our typical belief system and think that they may exist despite the lack of evidence.

The Lore of Mermaids & Where They Live

Mermaids and mermen have existed throughout popular lore since the earliest days of humankind.

As soon as humans began to navigate the sea, tales began spinning these beautiful mythological creatures that lived in the deepest, darkest parts of the world’s waters.

In Ancient Greece, they believed in merpeople so much that they were not only mentioned in their most significant literature, but they had a God of the Sea – Poseidon, and his messenger God Triton. Poseidon’s queen was a mermaid by the name of Amphitrite.

The equivalent of these Gods existed throughout the land, from Rome to Japan. They always were fish on the bottom, humans on top, beautiful, elegant, and advanced.

These usually benevolent and loving creatures should in no way be confused with others, like the sirens of the Odyssey by Homer – those are creatures bent on luring sailors to their destruction on the rocky portions of the sea. 

Merpeople want nothing more than to be left in secret.

Do They Live Anywhere Though?

Of course, there is a famous thought that merpeople do not exist and that the only place they live is within the hearts and minds of the people who believe in them.

Though this may be true, even in those hearts and minds – the merpeople live in the many extensive waters that cover the globe.

Remember, the earth is 71% water, and we have explored only a tiny portion of it. Things are waiting to be discovered – and merpeople very well are in that category.

What Water Can Mermaids and Mermen Live In?

Though there are some disputes throughout the lore of merpeople, the most popular belief is that if there are deep patches in any body of water, merpeople can live in either fresh or saltwater.

The water’s kind does not seem as necessary as the depth of the water for their survival. 

How can these mythological creatures go from fresh to saltwater when few marine animals can safely do so for long periods?

It would be because of the makeup of merpeople. The fact is, those who believe that the legends of mermaids are real also believe that these are highly developed, majorly evolved creatures.

They would have the internal and external organs needed to filter the water out quickly, not allowing it to stay in their system long enough to have any real effect on themselves. Learn how they eat.

It is time for a more in-depth look at the parts of water that are likely to play into where merpeople decide to make their homes and why the water properties help keep them hidden.

Water Depth

Though mermaids and mermen can come topside, the core thinking among believers is that merpeople’s evidence is virtually nonexistent because they live at such depths. Human beings can not get anywhere near there.

Humans can survive dives that go down around 400 feet deep and a bit further in some instances.

The problem with going too deep is not that your bones and body will be crushed – the amount of pressure needed to crush your bones is three times the point of pressure in the deepest part of the oceans on earth.

However, the pressure INSIDE your body is the real concern.

Once you get below 400 feet, the depth most professional divers will not go beneath, you risk many side effects on your body, especially the lungs.

Once past a certain point – and scientists do not know precisely what depth that is, as they have no way to test it without using a human, which is far too dangerous to do.

If you do go too deep, at some point, the organs in your body will react to the pressure, culminating in your lungs collapsing instantly, killing you. It is believed that these are the depths at which merpeople live.

They are thought to have a very different skeleton that can withstand these depths and the senses needed to survive and thrive in the total darkness that exists down there.

If this is the depth at which these creatures live, it would be no surprise that there is no evidence of them.

Water’s Geographic Location

There are stories of mermaids and mermen all across the world. That means believers think that merpeople are in every water body on every continent – Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America, and South America.

Though it is believed that merpeople can go between fresh and saltwater, their main home is thought to be in oceans. This is because it is easier for them to stay hidden at the depths only available to them in oceanic bodies.

There is a lot of lore of them, specifically in the Indian Ocean, the Atlantic Ocean, and the Red Sea.

Final Thoughts

There is no real way to say definitively that merpeople do or do not exist. There will always be people who come down on one side or the other of this argument.

It is not wrong to assume that as long as humans continue to interact with the water, there will continue to be speculation whether or not there are merpeople around the globe with us.

Next time you are lounging at the beach or on the water, keep your mind and your eyes open, searching the depths for the beautiful mythological creatures that know the secrets of the parts of water we as humans can only dream of going.