Riddle me this...

I know WHY the tail is how it is, I had already pointed that out a post or too up. I wasn't asking why it's tail was mammal and not fish. I was asking why it's called a half-fish when there is actually nothing fishy about it. Even little kids know that dolphins and whales aren't fish.

But I suppose Jeeves' was closest to answering it for me, when the connection was made people didn't really know the difference between fish and sea-mammals and terming a mermaid "half-fish" is either because you, too, make the same incorrect comparison or it's just become colloquial.

I too called them half-fish until I watched Harry Potter the other night with my cousin, who hadn't seen it, and realised that those mermaid were actually half-fish and the ones usually used aren't fish in any way. It's not a tail rotated 90 degrees because it doesn't function anything like a fish tail - mermaids typically swim like dolphins as it looks more elegant and it's more efficient with the body they have.

Yes...because marine mammals have scales and translucent fins...

Yes to what? I never asked anything...

Also - mermaid lore is just as commonly scale-less as it is scaled. And what's that about translucent fins?

A marine mammals back fin is basically the feet merged together at the heels then streamlined...so it's solid...fish and mermaids have those spiky membranous tails

3mpty's epiphany does have a point... it's a human-fish-dolphin hybrid! Functionality of a mammal-tail, appearance of a fish tail, and upper body of a human female.

I know mer means female, like were means male, so what does maid mean in that context?

I was going to ask that at some point when it didn't seem like I would be obsessed with mermaids to ask.