#the northern chronicles

[misswynters]

The Northern Chronicles

Cregan Stark x Arryn!wife!reader

[SYNOPSIS: This is just the beginning of the beautiful story of the Stark Dozen. The legendary family that ruled over the north and who’s children grew to influence all of Westeros.

[WARNING: none

[NOTE | short drabble of cregan and you with your 10 children at winterfell. (aged up to current time however some chapters will include when the children are younger as well) but will become a series! so if you would like to be tagged let me know in the comments.

NEXT: Northern Chronicles: Lady Arryn & Lord Stark

Snowflakes drifted lazily from the sky as you and your husband stood in the courtyard of Winterfell, watching your beautiful ten children play in the crisp winter air. The sight of them, bundled in animal furs and laughing as they tumbled through the snow, filled your heart with warmth despite the cold atmosphere.

Edrick, the eldest twin, a tall and sturdy young man with Cregan’s brooding eyes, was engaged in a snowball fight with his younger siblings. His laughter rang out as he dodged a particularly well-aimed snowball from his twin sister, who had inherited your quick wit and fiery spirit.

Selyse, the younger twin, is your eldest daughter, with her wild curls and spirited energy, led a group of her younger siblings in building an elaborate snow fort. The scene was chaotic but joyful, each child contributing their own unique flair to the project.

Cregan, sitting beside you, wrapped his arm around your waist, his presence a solid and comforting anchor in the midst of the winter wonderland. “Look at them,” he said softly, his voice filled with pride. “They’re growing up so quickly.”

You leaned into him, your gaze fixed on the children. “They are. It feels like just yesterday they were learning to walk, and now they’re running through the snow, making memories of their own.”

The two of you shared a moment of quiet contentment, watching as your youngest, barely old enough to walk, took his first wobbly steps in the snow, his siblings cheering him on with enthusiastic shouts.

Your youngest son, Finnian stood in front of you both holding a dead in his tiny arms. “Papa look at me!” The boy said enthusiastically, waving the dead animal around by the tail. Cregans eyes widened at the scene.

“Boy!, put that animal down. Now!” He said in a commanding voice as he stood up to walk towards his son. As an instinct, finnian began to run away, cutting through his siblings snowball fight. The mischievous little boy had the widest smile in his face. You thought it was adorable seeing your husband chase him.

As the sun began to dip below the horizon, casting a warm, golden light over the landscape, you and Cregan gathered the children for a cozy family dinner inside the great hall. The children’s laughter echoed through the halls as they recounted their adventures in the snow, their faces flushed with happiness.

The long wooden table was adorned with hearty fare—roasted meats, freshly baked bread, and rich, steaming stews. The hall was filled with the comforting aroma of home-cooked food, and the warmth of the hearth crackled cheerfully against the cold outside.

With everyone settled at the table, you took a moment to admire the scene. Cregan’s broad shoulders were relaxed as he shared a joke with the older children, while you served the younger ones with a smile. The joyful chaos of a large family dinner enveloped you, a testament to the love and unity that bound you all together.

Amidst the lively conversation and clinking of mugs, a handmaiden named Kyra, who had been assigned to help with the evening’s preparations, entered the hall carrying a fresh platter of meat. Her expression was sour, and her demeanor dismissive. She set the platter down with a huff, casting an impatient glance at the children.

As she turned to leave, she made an offhand comment loud enough for several to hear. “I suppose the Stark children are too busy playing to remember their manners,” she sneered, her gaze landing on your eldest daughter, Selyse.

Your daughter, already sensitive to such slights, stiffened in her seat, her cheeks flushing with a mix of embarrassment and anger. The room fell silent for a moment, the insult hanging heavily in the air.

Cregan’s eyes narrowed, and he shifted uncomfortably in his seat. You could see the protective anger in his gaze, but before he could speak, you gently touched his arm, signaling him to let you handle it.

Rising from your seat, you approached Kyra with a calm but firm demeanor. “Kyra, it seems there’s been a misunderstanding,” you began, your voice steady. “Our children are the heart of Winterfell, and they deserve respect, as do all who live and work here.”

Kyra’s face flushed with a mix of shame and surprise. “I didn’t mean to—”

You cut her off gently but firmly. “I understand. But please remember, everyone here is valued, and our children are no exception.”

Turning back to your daughter, you offered her a reassuring smile. “Come, sit with me,” you said softly, guiding her to a seat next to you. The warmth of your presence seemed to ease her tension, and she gave you a grateful, if slightly embarrassed, smile.

The dinner resumed with a renewed sense of camaraderie, the earlier tension slowly dissipating as the children continued to share their stories and laughter. Kyra, now noticeably more subdued, moved quietly through the hall, her previous rudeness replaced by a more respectful demeanor.

As the evening wore on and the stars began to twinkle outside the grand windows, you and Cregan watched as your children interacted with each other and the rest of the household staff. The hall was once again filled with the joyous sounds of family, and despite the brief moment of discord, the evening had restored its warm and loving atmosphere.

Cregan squeezed your hand under the table, his eyes filled with appreciation. “Thank you,” he murmured. “For handling that so gracefully.”

You smiled, leaning into him. “We’re a family, and their respect is very important, especially when it matters most.”

As the night drew to a close and the children’s laughter faded into sleepy murmurs, you and Cregan stood together, the echoes of the day’s joy lingering in the air. The love that filled Winterfell was a testament to the strength and unity of your family—a family that, despite its challenges, would always stand strong and united under the watchful gaze of the stars.

Next | Lady Arryn & Lord Stark

taglist: @benjicotblckwood @travelingmypassion @shoxji @thornsandtulips @spn-obession @giovanna-hyt @r-3dlips

banner: by @cafekitsune

[flambo19]

I think they deserve a beach holiday

[fictionadventurer]

It's a little-known fact that the actual reason Tolkien objected to the presence of Father Christmas in Narnia was that his children had been receiving letters from the real Father Christmas for years, and he was nothing like that.

[lesbians4armand]

sansa stark and book armand are kind of the same person if you think about it

[kyoshi-week]

KYOSHI ERA WEEK 2024: PROMPT SUBMISSIONS

Submissions will be open until April 1st!

Submit prompts

Check the event rules

Check the event schedule

[haveyoureadthisfantasybook]

vote yes if you have finished the entire book.

vote no if you have not finished the entire book.

(faq · submit a book)

[stairnaheireann]

#OTD in 1898 – Birth of novelist, C.S. Lewis, in Belfast.

‘Failures, repeated failures, are finger posts on the road to achievement. One fails forward toward success.’ –C.S. Lewis Born in Belfast, on 29 November 1898, C.S. Lewis went on to teach at Oxford University and became a renowned apologist writer, using logic and philosophy to support the tenets of his Christian faith. He is also known throughout the world as the author of the ‘Chronicles of…

[misswynters]

My Dragon Archive

Here is a list of all of the dragons mentioned in my fanfics AKA the dragons of the reader. Every one of them have their own unique style, appearance and history. some dragons are my own creations as well as canon based.

taken inspiration from @witchthewriter <3

✵ AERO “The Catastrophe”

Mounters: The reader | Stormbound | Wings of Camaraderie

✵ THE CANNIBAL

Mounters: The reader in Bastard Daughter

op: @witchthewriter

✵ MIRAELYS “The Celestial Majesty”

Mounter: Princess ___ of House Mantheon | Imperial Flame

✵ FROSTFANG “Winter’s Claw”

Mounters: Harlan, Daenys Targaryen | Northern Chronicles

[a/n: will be constantly updating this if i ever create another dragon oc for my universe. most of the dragons are made by me unless specified.

banners: @cafekitsune, gifs: @christophernolan

[edwardthomasnw]

Right

Here we go

(Will be honest it's not quite there, but I'm comfortable enough sharing it so it's out of my damn head-)

The most recent idea to find it's way into my head and make itself at home is Great Northern being on the NWR. With almost no one actually knowing who he is

Stay with me

So, in 1962/'63 the NWR's then CME - a former LNER man who'd moved to Sodor and The Works in the late 1940s - somehow manages to get the poor engine moved to Crovan's Gate, rather than being broken up. He also somehow gets the original frames there too. And has them swapped on. The boiler & frames of the rebuild then get cut up (this will play in later, haud yer wheesht!), and stored in trucks behind The Works with him, covered over with tarpaulins.

He is then forgotten about and left there for around half a century Because Reasons.

During the mid - late 2010s, Gordon - who, for whatever reason, is commandeered to shunt - rediscovers the frames as he prepares to move them elsewhere. Initially believing them to be some old wagon, perhaps a heavily-built wartime flatbed, the wind catches the tarp and reveals the number, presumably painted on by one of the group who switched the frames back. After the Fat Controller arrives (having been alerted to 'a situation', primarily involving Gordon having A Moment) a new small group is then made up to undertake the restoration, only they know who the engine is - though they can't stop the news of an A1/A3 just being found out the back of The Works going around.

On checking the surrounding trucks, it is realised they contain the cut up boiler and frames of the Rebuild - and then they find out why. The great-grandson of that CME finds his journal, which reveals he elected to cut up the rebuild parts in order to safely and secretly store them, with the eventual aim to recycle them into new parts for Great Northern - the same way Henry was rebuilt from a somewhat-naff stolen Pacific design into a Black Five all those years ago.. (yep, working by The Love Bug '97 rules - already had that sort of idea for Henry, and this latched to it perfectly) No one knows how it works, really, but it seemed to work for Henry - or, at least, didn't adversely affect him - so no harm was seen in repeating that process

(This last bit is where it gets A Bit Thin but I am at the Struggle Point with it now) A couple of years later (maybe a year instead), and the new boiler is in the frames. The steam tests are underway. He wakes up, to see Gordon rolling steadily into The Shop. "You started without me?" "We didn't think he'd be waking this soon..!" The Big Engine helped calm his younger brother's anxiety, and answered his questions to the best of his ability. He'd return for each of the following tests, and the 'inaugural steaming', leading him out of The Shop and into the yards - where some of the other engines were waiting to greet and welcome him.

Like with the Works staff and public in general, only a select group of the engines actually know who he is, and work with Gordon to help him. He is himself aware of his true identity, but only vaguely - he can recall some memories, more from after Thompson's rebuild than before, but they're all faint and somewhat clouded. He is, however, very sure of how those around him felt about the rebuild - comforting him due to his anxiety over it, despite his improved performance, and cursing Thompson for having done such to the eldest of their clan (okay yeah I know Gordon's eldest but shush). He was never blamed or faulted, and appreciates that, then and now.

He is still figuring himself out, and as a result has come to an agreement with TFC & Gordon that his true identity is not to be officially revealed until he is ready.

Again don't expect a story from me following up on this, I'm better at creating lore than turning it into stories (and even then most of it's half-written notes..), just sharing it cause it's an idea with form to it.

[kdmiller55]

Our Faithful God

1 Benjamin fathered Bela his firstborn, Ashbel the second, Aharah the third, 2 Nohah the fourth, and Rapha the fifth. 3 And Bela had sons: Addar, Gera, Abihud, 4 Abishua, Naaman, Ahoah, 5 Gera, Shephuphan, and Huram. 6 These are the sons of Ehud (they were heads of fathers’ houses of the inhabitants of Geba, and they were carried into exile to Manahath): 7 Naaman, Ahijah, and Gera, that is,…

[california-slow-take]

Midwinter is the perfect time for a voyage of discovery on San Francisco Bay. The bay and its tributaries affect everything from the weather to traffic jams. The bay gives the region its name and purpose. You could argue that without the bay there would be no San Francisco.

“The bay is full of history and great stories, from the native people to the Gold Rush, Spanish, Mexicans, Yankees and beyond to the present day,” said James Lessenger, a physician and regional historian. “And it’s a story that keeps going.”

Winter is a good time to see the bay because winter is the season of change: sunny clear days sometimes, storms and wind other days, and extreme high and low tides that both flood the shore and expose mysterious pieces of the past on the same day. The bay is always moving.

Like a lot of people who grew up in the Bay Area, I’ve always enjoyed the salt water, and sailed on the bay one way or another since I was a smaller kid than I am now. I’m not impartial.

So here are two bay stories — one a mini-cruise of discovery, the other a mystery from the bottom of the harbor.

The mini-cruise was aboard the ferryboat Argo from San Francisco to Oakland and back on a sunny winter afternoon. The Argo is sleek, clean and modern. Also near empty on a midday winter crossing. San Francisco looks at its best from the water, the city towers framed by the Bay Bridge with a foaming white wake. The Argo zips across the bay, then slows to enter the placid Oakland Estuary.

Here is global commerce up close. Six cargo ships were tied up on the Oakland side that afternoon, one sailing the next day for Hawaii, another for Japan, another loading scrap metal, others discharging cargo. Big cranes looming over the piers. On the Alameda side is a working shipyard and two seagoing tugs shepherding a barge, a reminder that 90% of everything we use comes by sea.

The ferry lands at the western edge of Jack London Square. I thought I’d stay for an hour or two, like a passenger on a cruise ship in a foreign port.

Jack London’s waterfront was clean, warm and very quiet. I stopped off at Plank’s just up the street, a combination bowling alley, restaurant and outdoor beer garden, with tables under the trees and a view of passing ships. It comes with a soundtrack — the whistles of passing passenger trains in the background. Nothing like it in San Francisco.

That’s just one of the ferry trips around. The shortest is a 10-minute “short hop” between Oakland and the island city of Alameda, the longest an hour-long ride north up the bay into San Pablo Bay to Vallejo. Some trips go to Mare Island, an old Navy base full of history. And a brewpub.

But Marin has always been my favorite destination: Sausalito, Larkspur, Tiburon, Angel Island.

I rode the ferry Del Norte to Sausalito last weekend, the time of the new moon, the Lunar New Year and the days of extreme tides. The water level can rise and fall nearly 9 feet. I took a stroll on the Sausalito waterfront at twilight, just before the last ferry back to the city.

It was a time of extreme low tide, and in the fading light, I could see the remains of a very old ship, bones and ribs and part of the bow, barely awash, sunk in the mud. It was about 60 feet long, a bit broad in the beam. It looked like a sailing vessel.

Mysterious pieces of the past surface at low tide, especially in backwater ports — old anchors, parts of deck gear and machinery, even the rusted fuel tank of the old lumber schooner Lassen, run aground at the foot of Johnson Street 90 years ago.

But this old wreck was different. It is usually invisible, underwater. But it had appeared in the twilight on the day of the new moon, like the mythical Scottish village of Brigadoon, a place unaffected by time that appears once every hundred years.

Historians say that part of the Sausalito shore was once the site of the Crichton and Arques Shipyard, which closed more than a century ago. Was this old skeleton of a ship part of that yard? Or something else? Members of the Sausalito Historical Society were consulted. No one knew for sure. “You’ve uncovered quite a Sausalito mystery,” said Jerry Taylor, the historical society’s president.

Meanwhile, farther up the bay, the very low tide on the weekend exposed what’s left of the shipways of the Matthew Turner Shipyard in Benicia. Turner, a master shipbuilder, built more than 200 wooden vessels at Benicia. Lessenger said a piece of the whale ship Stamboul, built in Massachusetts 179 years ago, also shows up at very low tide when the bay gives up its secrets.

One of Turner’s most famous ships, the brigantine Galilee, was run aground at the foot of Napa Street in Sausalito and abandoned years ago. The bones of the Galilee also reappear in low water.

“The bay is a fascinating story that keeps going,” Lessenger said.

[mischiefmanagers]

Cassian Fic Rec Library 🦇❤️

giving the Lord of Bloodshed some love with one hundred fic recs! these are Cassian x Reader and Cassian x OC fics in no particular order! enjoy ✨

🌼 personal favorite 🥀 angst 💞 fluff 🔥 smut

by @bloodycassian

Bow + Scrape 🥀

Hellish 🥀

MEDWITCH 🥀💞

by @ughthatimagineblog

blush 💞

i broke my promise 🥀

by @sarawritestories

You Are Not a Burden 🥀💞

Unwavering Presence 💞🌼

by @thebadgerclan

Sandwich 💞

by @prythianpages

Stuck On You 💞🥀🔥🌼

Lay All Your Love On Me🔥

by @thehighladywrites

That's your mother, but she's my wife first... 💞🥀🔥

The Airhead Chronicles 💞🔥🌼

by @acourtofwhatthefuck

Crawling Back to You (series) 💞🥀🔥🌼

injury angst 🥀

Someone Different, Someone New 🥀

by @acourtofmarvels

Patience 💞

by @sarcasmsweetie

For All of Our Days 💞

by @jswizzlewrites

I'd say yes to anything for you 💞

Was any of it real? 🥀

I can't be the person for you 🥀

Secrets 💞

by @cherhys

Northern Lights 💞

by @arrantsnowdrop

Ouch 💞

by @coffeepancakes42

Obsessed 💞

by @leafsandstarlight

A Second Shadow 💞

How Kindness Lingers 💞🌼

Never Considered 💞🌼

Halley's Comet 🥀💞🔥🌼

by @tadpolesonalgae

Lie to Me 🔥

by @isa-beenme

Kiss the Girl 💞

by @danikamariewrites

Do You Still Love Me? 🥀💞

Flinch 🥀💞🌼

Lay On Me 💞🔥

Protector 🥀💞

Punches 🥀

by @parkerslatte

One Step Back, Three Steps Forward 🥀💞

by @minicoffee00

I don't ask for much 🥀

by @shadowdaddies

Karma 🥀💞

It's Never Over 💞

Protect Our Family💞

Stay Together 🥀

Aella 💞

by @sapchat

The Lord's Daughter 🥀💞

by @solbaby7

Burn Baby Burn 🥀

Killing Me Softly 🥀

by @thevanserrras

Heaven 💞

by @writingforrhys

smaller than this 🥀

by @hellcat8908

I've Got You 🥀

by @daycourtofficial

Hickeys and The Marks We Leave 🥀

A Teeny, Tiny Illyrian Warrior 💞

by @sugairsstuff

who did this to you. 💞

by @hellodarling1357

I Can See You 💞

Battle Wounds 🥀💞

Friend and Foe 💞

Battlefield Confessions 💞

Flames and Embers

Tiny Toes 💞🌼

Inked 💞

Touched by an Angel 💞

by @illyrianbitch

And I'm Thinking About Your Lips 🔥

by @azsazz

Tonight I'm So Lonely 🥀

Break Up in a Small Town 🥀

Change Your Ticket 🥀💞🔥🌼

by @heloisedaphnebrightmore

lack of observation skills 💞

by @azrielsdove

Rejected 🥀💞🌼

Never Enough 🥀💞

Old God 🥀💞

Safe🥀

by @illyrian-dreamer

With benefits🔥

by @itsphoenix0724

Pink Azalea 🥀

by @azrielslightintheshadows

Wings. 💞

Forever. 🥀

Finally. 🥀💞

Overprotective daddy. 💞

Survival. 🥀💞

Always. 🥀

Forgotten. 🥀💞

Live without you 🥀

by @xreaderbooks

Miscommunication 🥀💞

by @violet-shadows

I'd do anything for you 💞

I'm supposed to protect you 🥀💞

by @draemgal

making the bed 🥀💞

by @readychilledwine

Gentle 💞

Daddy's Girl 💞

To Have and to Hold 💞🌼

So Small 🥀

Surrender 🥀

Hot for Teacher 💞🌼

Heavy 🥀💞

by @leahkenobi

need him 🥀

by @thelov3lybookworm

Mere coincidence?

Scones 💞

by @lidiasloca

delicately 🥀

during the bad days 💞

by @throneofsapphics

obsession 💞

by @tsunami-of-tears

Sunny 💞

by @jeannineee

Sleepless 💞

Lessons

Together🥀

by @clairebear08

Broken Vase🔥

[sihtryggr]

FIRE AND BLOOD + THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA:

“To the Glistening Eastern Sea, I give you Queen Lucy, the Valiant. To the Great Western Wood, King Edmund, the Just. To the Radiant Southern Sun, Queen Susan, the Gentle. And to the Clear Northern Sky, I give you King Peter, the Magnificent.”

[broomsick]

List of interesting ressources pertaining to norse paganism, scandinavian folklore and history, and nordic religions in general

These are sources I have personally used in the context of my research, and which I've enjoyed and found useful. Please don’t mind if I missed this or that ressource, as for this post, I focused solely on my own preferences when it comes to research. I may add on to this list via reblog if other interesting sources come to my mind after this has been posted. Good luck on your research! And as always, my question box is open if you have any questions pertaining to my experiences and thoughts on paganism.

Mythology

The Viking Spirit: An Introduction to Norse Mythology and Religion

Dictionnary of Northern Mythology

The Prose and Poetic Eddas (online)

Grottasöngr: The Song of Grotti (online)

The Poetic Edda: Stories of the Norse Gods and Heroes

The Wanderer's Hávamál

The Song of Beowulf

Rauðúlfs Þáttr

The Penguin Book of Norse Myths: Gods of the Vikings (Kevin Crossley-Holland's are my favorite retellings)

Myths of the Norsemen From the Eddas and the Sagas (online) A source that's as old as the world, but still very complete and an interesting read.

The Elder Eddas of Saemung Sigfusson

Pocket Hávamál

Myths of the Pagan North: Gods of the Norsemen

Lore of the Vanir: A Brief Overview of the Vanir Gods

Anglo-Saxon and Norse Poems

Gods of the Ancient Northmen

Gods of the Ancient Northmen (online)

Two Icelandic Stories: Hreiðars Þáttr and Orms Þáttr

Two Icelandic Stories: Hreiðars Þáttr and Orms Þáttr (online)

Sagas

Two Sagas of Mythical Heroes: Hervor and Heidrek & Hrólf Kraki and His Champions (compiling the Hervarar saga ok Heiðreks and the Hrólfs saga kraka)

Icelandic Saga Database (website)

The Saga of the Jómsvíkings

The Heimskringla or the Chronicle of the Kings of Norway (online)

Stories and Ballads of the Far Past: Icelandic and Faroese

Heimskringla: History of the Kings of Norway

The Saga of the Volsungs: With the Saga of Ragnar Lothbrok

The Saga of the Volsungs (online) Interesting analysis, but this is another pretty old source.

The Story of the Volsungs (online) Morris and Magnusson translation

The Vinland Sagas

Hákon the Good's Saga (online)

History of religious practices

The Viking Way: Magic and Mind in Late Iron Age Scandinavia

Nordic Religions in the Viking Age

Agricola and Germania Tacitus' account of religion in nordic countries

Myths and Symbols in Pagan Europe: Early Scandinavian and Celtic Religions

Tacitus on Germany (online)

Scandinavia and the Viking Age

Viking Age Iceland

Landnámabók: Book of the Settlement of Iceland (online)

The Age of the Vikings

Gesta Danorum: The Danish History (Books I-IX)

The Sea Wolves: a History of the Vikings

The Viking World

Guta Lag: The Law of the Gotlanders (online)

The Pre-Christian Religions of the North This is a four-volume series I haven't read yet, but that I wish to acquire soon! It's the next research read I have planned.

Old Norse Folklore: Tradition, Innovation, and Performance in Medieval Scandinavia

Children of Ash and Elm: A History of the Vikings

The Penguin Historical Atlas of the Vikings by John Haywood

Landnámabók: Viking Settlers and Their Customs in Iceland

Nordic Tales: Folktales from Norway, Sweden, Finland, Iceland and Denmark For a little literary break from all the serious research! The stories are told in a way that can sometimes get repetitive, but it makes it easier to notice recurring patterns and themes within Scandinavian oral tradition.

Old Norse-Icelandic Literature: A Short Introduction

Saga Form, Oral Prehistory, and the Icelandic Social Context

An Early Meal: A Viking Age Cookbook and Culinary Oddyssey

Runes & Old Norse language

Uppland region runestones and their translations

Viking Language 1: Learn Old Norse, Runes, and Icelandic Sagas and Viking Language 2: The Old Norse Reader

Catalogue of the Manks Crosses with Runic Inscriptions

Old Norse - Old Icelandic: Concise Introduction to the Language of the Sagas

A Companion to Old Norse-Icelandic Literature and Culture

Nordic Runes: Understanding, Casting, and Interpreting the Ancient Viking Oracle 

YouTube channels

Ocean Keltoi

Arith Härger

Old Halfdan

Jackson Crawford

Wolf the Red

Sigurboði Grétarsson

Grimfrost

(Reminder! The channel "The Wisdom of Odin", aka Jacob Toddson, is a known supporter of pseudo scientific theories and of the AFA, a folkist and white-supremacist organization, and he's been known to hold cult-like, dangerous rituals, as well as to use his UPG as truth and to ask for his followers to provide money for his building some kind of "real life viking hall", as supposedly asked to him by Óðinn himself. A source to avoid. But more on that here.)

Websites

The Troth

Norse Mythology for Smart People

Voluspa.org

Icelandic Saga Database

Skaldic Project

Life in Norway This is more of a tourist's ressources, but I find they publish loads of fascinating articles pertaining to Norway's history and its traditions.

[fate-magical-girls]

The Varieties of Chinese Mermaids

In the modern day, most people will think of the pearl-crying Jiaoren. However JIAOREN IS NOT THE PERFECT EQUIVALENT OF THE MERMAID in pre-modern folklore.

Chinese mermaids come in multiple types. Most of them can be found in the Chronicle of the Mountains and the Seas (Shan Hai Jing/山海經). Others can be found in the In Search of the Supernatural (Sou Shen Ji/搜神記) or Extensive Records of the Taiping Era (Taiping Guangji/太平廣記).

YUFU/MER-WIFE (魚婦): Zhuanxu was a god-emperor in legendary times, whose accomplishments included sending two of his sons to complete the separation of Heaven and Earth. When he died, fish ate his corpse, becoming half fish and half human women. They live in the Great Wilderness toward the west of China. They combine traits of humans, fish, and snakes. The Classic of Mountains and the Seas states: "There is a fish half-withered, it is Zhuanxu that died and then revived; when the winds blow northward, the sky whips up great geysers, snakes transform into fish, and those are mer-wives."

LINGYU/HILL FISH (陵魚，鯪魚): The Lingyu lived in the northern regions of China, either in the sea or mountain streams. They have human faces and limbs, but fish bodies. They are identified with Chinese giant salamanders or mud carp in the modern day. The Classic of Mountains and Seas states: "The nation of Guye is in the sea, among the Guye mountain range, surrounded by peaks to the southwest. There are great crabs are in the sea. There are Lingyu, which have human heads, feet, and hands, in the sea."

CHIRU/RED RU FISH (赤鱬): The Chiru lived in mountain in the south of China. It was red all over, had a human face, and its call sounded like that of a shelduck or mandarin duck. Eating its flesh protected people from contracting scabies. They are identified with sockeye salmon in the modern day. The Classic of Mountains and Seas states: "Three hundred miles more to the east, there is the mountain called Blue Hill...The Ying Waters emerge from here. Within are many Chiru; their forms are like fish, yet they have human faces, and their cries are like that of a shelduck. Those that eat its flesh will never have scabies."

DIREN/DI PEOPLE (氐人): The nation of the Di People was in the South of China. They were human from the waist up and fish from the waist down. They might have been a mythologization of the real Di People, who lived in western China, spread out from Shaanxi to Gansu. They joined the confederation of nomadic peoples who conquered Northern China during the Sixteen Kingdoms period. The Baima people of Gansu believe themselves to be descended from the ancient Di. The Classic of the Mountains and Seas states: "The nation of the Di People is west of the Jianmu Tree. Its inhabitants have human faces but fish bodies, with no feet."

HAI RENYU/SEA MERMAID (海人魚): The Sea Mermaid lives in the East China Sea. They tend to be around five to six shaku tall. (4'7"-5'6" or 1.4-1.68 meters.) Their upper bodies were that of humans, and they were all very beautiful. Their skins were white as jade, and their tails had no scales, but were covered in fine rainbow-colored hairs. Their hair grew long and wild like horse manes. Their private organs were much like that of humans, and they often sought humans or were sought by humans as mates in coastal communities, where they would live in a pool on their spouse's property. Sometimes they had red feelers or fins on their elbows and backs. Their bodies could not be penetrated by blades, but their fats could be harvested after death to form ever-burning candles. Han Dynasty texts state: "Merfolk have a human-like form longer than one shaku. They are not fit for consumption. Their skins are rougher than those of sharks, and cannot be penetrated by saws. They have little holes on their neck that they breathe through...Their fat is used to light lamps in royal tombs because the fire will never extinguish." Extensive Records of the Taiping Era states: "Sea Mermaids are found in the Eastern Sea. The largest ones are five or six shaku long. They are shaped like humans, with the brows and eyes, mouths and noses, hands and fingers, and heads of beautiful women, lacking in no feature. Their flesh is white as jade, and they have no scales, but thin, soft, and sleek hairs of five colors about one or two inches in length. Their private organs were no different from those of ordinary men and women. Widows and widowers from coastal communities often acquire them and raise them in pools. They mate the same way humans do, and never harm humans."

LOTING YUREN/LOTING FISH-MEN (盧亭魚人): Loting Fish-Men were found in the south of China, mostly around the Guangdong, Macau, and Hong Kong regions. They had humanoid limbs and humanoid faces with yellow hair and yellow eyes, but scaly bodies with fish tails. They lived mostly in the water, feeding on fish, but also built houses from mussel shells, and their favorite snack was chicken blood. They were a mythologization of the Tanka People, a southern Chinese pariah class who were once forced to live on their boats, as well as the Semang People. Ming Dynasty texts state: "The Jin Dynasty rebel Lu Ting was defeated and fled into the Guangdong region, where he lived a fugitive life on the water. After some generations, his descendants were unable to procure food or clothes, so they went about bare bodied and were called Loting. They would often sail out on the sea fishing for food, and they could all lie underwater for three or four days without dying, for they had already become fish." Qing Dynasty texts state: "Among the merfolk are the Loting Fish-Men, who are very numerous on Dayushan Island and the Wanshan Islands. Their adults are like humans, with male and female. Their hairs are dusky yellow and short and their eyes are also yellow, while their faces are black. Their tails are around an inch long. When they encounter humans they dive fearfully into the water. Often they would float along the waves, which would amaze people, who would they chase them. When a man who acquired one their females did the dirty with her, the fish-woman could not speak, only giggle. After a long while, she learned to wear clothes and eat grains. She was brought to Dayushan, where she went back to the water. These are the merfolk who do not harm men."

JIAOREN/SAMEBITO/SHARK-MEN (鮫人): Jiaoren are found in the South Seas. THEY ARE MER-SHARKS. THEY HAVE INKY BLACK BODIES, WILD HAIR, GLOWING GREEN EYES, AND SHARP TEETH. They are usually employed by dragon gods as weavers, capable of working tirelessly and spinning special waterproof silks. Their tears became pearls. They were first equated to Western mermaids by modern fantasy writers romanticizing the fact that they cried pearls.

WA WA YU/KIDDO FISH (娃娃魚): The Chinese Giant Salamander was often called a "mer-person" in the Ming and Qing dynasties, and described having a cry that resembled a baby's wail. To this day the colloquial name is still "Kiddo Fish".

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The 'Valkyrie' from Hårby 800 CE. Note the swastika on the shield.

"Contemporary foreign sources testify abundantly that the Byzantine Greeks, even prior to 852, knew the Russes to be Scandinavians. Luidprand of Cremona, who was in Constantinople in 949, writes of the Byzantine capital that it is situated among dangerous neighbors, for at its north it is menaced by Magyars, Pechenegs, Khazars and Rusii, "Whom we call Nordmanni [Normans]." The identification of Rusii with Normans is repeated in his subsequent account of Igor's foray of 942."

-The Russian Primary Chronicle, Laurentian Text, translated and edited by Samuel Hazzard Cross & Olgerd P. Sherbowitz-Wetzor

...

Al-Masudi identified the Rus with the same northern people raiding al-Andalus in the Iberian Peninsula: "Sometime before the year 300/912–913, ships carrying thousands of men reached al-Andalus by sea and raided the Atlantic coasts. The people of al-Andalus claimed that these enemies were one of the nations of the majūs [word for Vikings in al-Andalus], who came to attack them by sea every two hundred years and that they reach their country by means of a channel which communicates with the Ocean. This is not to be confused with the channel upon which is the bronze lighthouse. Personally, I think – but God best knows the truth – that this channel communicates with the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea and that the attackers were those Rūs we have already mentioned, since they are the only people who sail those seas that communicate with the Ocean."

- quote from Ibn Fadlan and the Land of Darkness