A mermaid is a mythological creature with a female head and body and the torso and tail of a fish. Mermaids are popular characters in fiction, folklore, popular culture and literature. The word is a combination of the Old English word 'mere', meaning sea, and maid, meaning woman. The male equivalent of a mermaid is a merman.
Sightings
Although mermaids are mythological creatures, there have been a number of claimed sightings of mermaids across the world over the years. In Canada, there was a sighting of a mermaid in the Vancouver and Victoria area sometime between 1870 and 1890, then another sighting in 1967.
In August 2009, the Israeli town of Kiryat Yam decided to offer a $1 million reward for anyone who could prove the existence of mermaids off the coast of the town. The decision to offer the reward came after dozens of people had claimed to see a mermaid leaping out of the water.
Alternatives
Although you cannot become a 'real' mermaid, if you have a lot of time on your hands you might be able to make a fancy mermaid costume for a party, for instance.
Alternatively, if you do not have time to make your own, there are plenty of mermaid costumes available for sale on online auction sites such as eBay.