The Nommos

Are the Nommos beings

the real source of the worldwide

mermaid legends?

The term Nommos is derived from the Dogon word meaning, “to make one drink.” The Dogon is a tribe of people located in the West African country of Mali which is the larger part of the ancient Mali Empire. The Nommos are usually described as amphibious, fish-like creatures, having both male and female characteristics. Dogon folk art represents the Nommos as creatures with a humanoid upper body as well as having legs and feet, with a fish-like behind or tail.

The description alone seems “so far out there” or strange it begs to be true.    They are also referred to by the Dogons as “Masters of the Water”, “the Monitors”, or "the Teachers”.

The Dogon reportedly shared with two French anthropologists a belief that the Nommos were former inhabitants of a world from the Sirius star system. The Nommos arrived (they reported) by way of the sky “in a vessel which brought forth much fire as well as the sounds of thunder”. After arriving, the Nommos are said to have created what sounds like a small lake of water, and then jumped head first into the water where they preferred to stay as opposed to dry land. Legends explain that the Nommos preferred an environment of water in which to live.

During the 1970s, a book by Robert Temple titled The Sirius Mystery tells of the traditions and beliefs of the Dogon tribe concerning Sirius and the Nommos. In The Sirius Mystery, Temple contends that the Nommos were extraterrestrial inhabitants of the Sirius star system who traveled to earth at some time in the distant past, and that they shared knowledge about the Sirius star system as well as our own solar system with the early Egyptians, who, according to the Dogon peoples, are their ancestors. This particular argument (among others) is supported by some who insist that the great Sphinx has a typical Negro facial appearance.

It is of some significance as well to note that the Nommos creatures also appear in Babylonian and Sumerian mythology, therefore lending more creditability to the reported folklore of the Dogon Tribe.

As for the making of the mermaid legends, I expect that the Nommos being or creatures are a better source than anything else. Christopher Columbus even claimed to have seen at least 3 mermaids “playing” with each other on one of his many voyages, but he said the ones he witnessed were not very attractive.

Sources …

http://tgsfree4allinfo.blogspot.com/2011/08/dogon-tribe.html        

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nommo                                                 

http://www.unmuseum.org/siriusb.htm                               

http://www.mermaidscuba.com/mermaidimages.shtml                        http://www.mermaid.net/mermaid