merman
nounEtymology From Middle English mereman, from Old English *meremann (“merman”) (suggested by Old English meremenn, meremennen, meremenin (“mermaid, siren”)), equivalent to mer- + man. Cognate with Dutch meerman (“merman”), German Meermann (“merman”).
1
A legendary creature, human male from the waist up, fishlike from the waist down.
- The meer man hath no feet but fins And this hath legs you see and shins.1653, The Loves of Hero and Leander: A Mock Poem, London, page 19: