Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Seaweeds in mythology, folklore, poetry, and life

  • Published:
Journal of Applied Phycology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Seaweeds have been around since well before the dawn of mankind and have had varying degrees of influence on societies throughout history. Today, they have a well-established position of value after much scientific endeavour and commercialisation of applications. In the distant past, however, seaweeds were seen as a fundamental component of the sea and the beings associated with it, and they also held an essential connection to the land and the people who dwelt there. In the absence of science, myths and legends typically prevailed, and in the case of seaweed science today, many kernels of truth have now been exposed. This review traces myths and legends and some poetry which has been influenced by macroalgae over the ages, and it describes some of the early uses of seaweeds by humankind across the globe. With such a prominent role in the minds and imaginations of story tellers, artists, musicians, and poets, seaweeds command a position of respect in the evolution of ecological goods and services. While not strictly scientific, the information reviewed and laid out in this article underpins some of those uses of seaweeds that have now been established following thorough evidence-based research. Such research leads to a myriad of values of the goods and services rendered by seaweeds and their extracts, providing significant benefits to mankind, both currently, and into the future. Seaweeds were around well before the Anthropocene and are very likely to survive and contribute to global survival much longer than this current epoch.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7
Fig. 8
Fig. 9
Fig. 10
Fig. 11
Fig. 12

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Addiss S, Groemer G, Rimer JT (2006) Traditional Japanese arts and culture: an illustrated sourcebook. University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu

    Google Scholar 

  • Alberti R (1924) Marinero en tierra. Grupo Editorial Lumen, Barcelona

    Google Scholar 

  • Aleksandrowicz L, Green R, Joy EJM, Smith P, Haines A (2016) The impacts of dietary change on greenhouse gas emissions, land use, water use and health: a systematic review. PLoS One 11:e0165797

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Andrade M, Nieto O (2014) Myths and legends from Chiloé. Ediciones Universidad Austral de Chile, Valdivia

    Google Scholar 

  • Bane T (2010) Encyclopedia of vampire mythology. McFarland, Jefferson

    Google Scholar 

  • Bane T (2016) Encyclopedia of beasts and monsters in myth, legend and folklore. McFarland, Jefferson

    Google Scholar 

  • Bashō M, Reichhold J, Tsujimura S (2013) Bashō: the complete haiku. Kodansha America, Inc

    Google Scholar 

  • Becker H (2001) Seaweed memories: in the jaws of the sea. Wolfhound Press, Dublin

    Google Scholar 

  • Beckwith MW (1951) The kumulipo: a Hawaiian creation chant. University of Chicago Press, Chicago

    Google Scholar 

  • Beckwith MW (1982) Hawaiian mythology. University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu

    Google Scholar 

  • Best E (2005) Maori religion and mythology (Part 2). Te Papa Press, Wellington

    Google Scholar 

  • Bingham A (2004) South and Meso-American Mythology A to Z. Facts On File, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Boas F (1921) Ethnology of the Kwakiutl. Bureau of American Ethnology, 35th Annual Report. Smithsonian Institution, Washington

  • Borowitzka MA (2009) Ralph Lewin (1921-2008). J Appl Phycol 21:1–9

    Google Scholar 

  • Buckova M (2011) Comparison and analysis of eschatological themes in Polynesian mythology as a survivor of protopolynesian unity. Asian Afr Studies 20:114–134

    Google Scholar 

  • Carmichael A (1900) Carmina Gadelica. Hymns and incantations. T & A Constable. Printers to her Majesty, Edinburgh

  • Carter L, Duncan S, Leoni G, Paterson L, Ratima MT, Reilly M, Rewi P (2018) Te koparapara: an introduction to the Maori world. Auckland University Press, Auckland

    Google Scholar 

  • Chapman VJ (1950) Seaweeds and their uses. Methuen & Co. Ltd., London

    Google Scholar 

  • Chapman RL (2013) Algae: the world’s most important “plants”–an introduction. Mitig Adapt Strat Glob Change 18:5–12

    Google Scholar 

  • Chopin T (1998) The seaweed resources of Eastern Canada. In: Critchley AT, Ohno M (eds) Seaweed resources of the world. Japan International Cooperation Agency, Yokosuka, pp 273–302

    Google Scholar 

  • Chung M-S, Pangmulgwan K-M (2014) Encyclopedia of Korean folk literature. National Folk Museum of Korea, Seoul

    Google Scholar 

  • Cook E (1844) Song of the seaweed. New Monthly Magazine 3:448–452

    Google Scholar 

  • Costanza R, dArge R, de Groot R, Farber S, Grasso M, Hannon B, Limburg K, Naeem S, O'Neill RV, Paruelo J, Raskin RG, Sutton P, van den Belt M (1997) The value of the world’s ecosystem services and natural capital. Nature 387:253–260

  • Crabbe G (1846) Rev. George Crabbe’s poems. John James Chidley, London

    Google Scholar 

  • De Vere A (1843) The search after Proserpine, recollections of Greece, and other poems. John Henry Parker, Oxford

    Google Scholar 

  • Dixon CC (1925) The Sargasso Sea. Geogr J 66:434–442

    Google Scholar 

  • Douglas N (1928) Birds and beasts of the Greek anthology. Chapman and Hall, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Duan D, Critchley AT, Fu X, Pereira L (2019) Preface: bioactive substances of various seaweeds and their applications and utilization. J Oceanol Limnol 37:779–782

    Google Scholar 

  • Duggins M (2017) Pacific Ocean flowers. Colonial seaweeds albums. In: Mentz S, Rojas ME (eds) The sea and nineteenth-century Anglophone literary culture. Rouletge, London, pp 119–132

    Google Scholar 

  • Eiriksson L (2004) Egil’s Saga. Penguin Books, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Eliot TS (1915) The love song of J. Alfred Prufrock. Poetry 6:130–135

    Google Scholar 

  • Fairbanks A (translator) (1931) Philostratus the Elder, imagines. Harvard University Press, Cambridge

  • Frankel VE (2010) From girl to goddess: the heroine's journey through myth and legend. McFarland, Jefferson

    Google Scholar 

  • Freeman P (2017) Celtic mythology: tales of gods, goddesses, and heroes. Oxford University Press, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Glatzer J (2014) Native American festivals and ceremonies. Manson Crest, Philadelphia

    Google Scholar 

  • Gross JL (2017) Waipi'o valley: a Polynesian journey from Eden to Eden (Vol. 2). Xlibris, Indiana

  • Hadland Davis F (1912) Myths and legends of Japan. George G. Harrap & Co., London

    Google Scholar 

  • Hamilton J (1821) The garden of Florence; and other poems. John Warren, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Hansen W (2005) Classical mythology. A guide to the mythical world of the Greeks and Romans. Oxford University Press, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Hickman HH (2013) Irish sea mossing in Scituate Mass 1960–1997: knee deep in seaweed. CreateSpaceIndependent Publishing Platform

  • Hunt SE (2005) Free, bold, joyous: the love of seaweed in Margaret Gatty and other mid-Victorian writers. Environ Hist 11:5–34

    Google Scholar 

  • InfoMAXE (2015) El sargazo amargo. http://paxinasdaguarda.blogspot.com/2015/07/el-sargazo-amargo-por-eliseo-alonso.html. Accessed 19 April 2014

  • Izzet J (1904) Maori lore. Mackay J. Government Printer, Wellington

    Google Scholar 

  • Jasper RCD, Cuming GJ (1975) Prayers of eucharist: early and reformed. Pueblo Books, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Joyce PW (1906) A smaller social history of ancient Ireland. Longmans, Green & Co., London

    Google Scholar 

  • Juanes JA, Guinda X, Puente A, Revilla JA (2008) Macroalgae, a suitable indicator of the ecological status of coastal rocky communities in the NE Atlantic. Ecol Indic 8:351–359

    Google Scholar 

  • Judson KB (1917) Myths and legends of British North America. AC McClurg & Co, Chicago

    Google Scholar 

  • Jung CG, Kerenyi C (1969) Essays on a science of mythology: the myth of the divine child and the mysteries of Eleusis. Princeton University Press, New Jersey

    Google Scholar 

  • Konishi J (1986) A history of Japanese literature (Vol. 2). Princeton University Press, New Jersey

  • Lacoste P, Castro A, Mujica F, Lacoste Adunka M (2017) Patrimonio y desarrollo territorial. Productos típicos alimentarios y artesanales de la región de O’Higgins. Identidad, historia y potencial de desarrollo. Universidad de Santiago de Chile, Santiago

  • Landor AHS (1893) Alone with the Hairy Ainu. John Murray, Albemarle street, London

  • Landsborough D (1857) A popular history of British seaweeds. Reeve & Benham, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Lewin RA (1987) The biology of algae and diverse other verses. The Boxwood Press, California

    Google Scholar 

  • Lobo Y (2016) In the wake of basho: bestiary in the rock garden. Xlibris, Indiana

    Google Scholar 

  • Longfellow HW (1848) The poems of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Harper & Brothers, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Lowell JR (1890) The poetical works of James Russel Lowell. Houghton Mifflin & Co., Boston

    Google Scholar 

  • MacCaferty H (2019) Chef Ángel León wins Michelin’s inaugural Sustainability Award. Fine Dining Lovers. https://www.finedininglovers.com/article/chef-angel-leon-aponiente-michelin-sustainability-award. Accessed 3 Sept 2019

  • MacEacheran M (2016) The last mermaids of Japan. BBC News. http://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20160829-the-last-mermaids-of-japan. Accessed 28 Aug 2019

  • Machado L, Magnusson M, Paul NA, Kinley R, de Nys R, Tomkins N (2016) Dose-response effects of Asparagopsis taxiformis and Oedogonium sp. on in vitro fermentation and methane production. J Appl Phycol 28:1443–1452

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Magan M (2019) Seaweed: Irelands nutritional gift from winter. The Irish Times. https://www.irishtimes.com/life-and-style/food-and-drink/seaweed-ireland-s-nutritional-gift-from-winter-1.3759005. Accessed 28 Jan 2020

  • Marshall J (2008) Tides of change on Grand Manan island: culture and belonging in a fishing community. McGill-Queen's University Press, Quebec

    Google Scholar 

  • Martin M (1703) A description of the western islands of Scotland. Printed for Andrew Bell, at the Cross-Keys and Bible in Cornhill, London

  • Marwick EV (2000) The folklore of Orkney and Shetland. Birlinn Ltd., Edinburgh

    Google Scholar 

  • McCullough HC (translator) (1968) Tales of Ise: lyrical episodes from tenth-century Japan. Stanford University Press, California

  • McErlean TC (2007) Archaeology of the Strangford Lough kelp industry in the eighteenth- and early nineteenth centuries. Hist Archaeol 41:76–93

    Google Scholar 

  • McLintock AH (1966). Myths. Digitised encyclopedia of New Zealand. http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/1966/maori-myths-and-traditions/page-4. Accessed 21 Aug 2019

  • McMonagail M, Morrison L (2020) The seaweed resources of Ireland: a twenty-first century perspective. J Appl Phycol. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10811-020-02067-7

  • Molina Herrera E (1950) Mitología chilota. An Univ Chile 79:37–68

    Google Scholar 

  • Monaghan P (2008) The encyclopedia of Celtic mythology and folklore. Facts On File Inc., New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Mouritsen OG (2013) Seaweeds. Edible, available & sustainable. Chicago University Press, Chicago

    Google Scholar 

  • Mouritsen OG, Rhatigan P, Pérez-Lloréns JL (2018) World cuisine of seaweeds: science meets gastronomy. Int J Gastron Food Sci 14:55–65

    Google Scholar 

  • Mouritsen OG, Rhatigan P, Pérez-Lloréns JL (2019) The rise of seaweed gastronomy: phycogastronomy. Bot Mar 62:195–209

    Google Scholar 

  • Muñoz J (1916) Frente al mar. La Semana, Rancagua

    Google Scholar 

  • Murray JB (2014) Rimurimu. Capturing, cultural, creativity, collectively http://jobromurray.blogspot.com/2014/09/karakia-waiata-rongoa-pepeha.html. Accessed 30 August 2019

  • Neruda P (1959) Cien sonetos de amor. Editorial Universitaria, Santiago de Chile

    Google Scholar 

  • Nishizawa K (2002) Seaweeds kaiso: bountiful harvest from the seas. Japan Seaweed Association, Tosa

    Google Scholar 

  • O’Connor K (2017) Seaweed: a global history. Reaction Books, London

    Google Scholar 

  • O’Neill M (1904) Songs of the glens of Antrim. The Macmillan Co., New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Percival JG (1842) Elegant extracts (Vol. 5, poetry). Benjamin B. Mussey, Boston

    Google Scholar 

  • Pérez-Lloréns JL (2019) Seaweed consumption in the Americas. Gastronomica 19:49–59

    Google Scholar 

  • Pérez-Lloréns JL, Hernández I, Vergara JJ, Brun FG, León A (2018) Those curious and delicious seaweeds. A fascinating voyage from Biology to Gastronomy. Editorial UCA, Cádiz

    Google Scholar 

  • Philippi DL (1991) Norito: a translation of the ancient Japanese ritual prayers. Princeton University Press, New Jersey

    Google Scholar 

  • Pratt A (1850) Chapters on the common things of the sea-side. Society for promoting Christian knowledge, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Reed M (1907) The economic seaweeds of Hawaii and their food value. Government Printing Office, Washington

    Google Scholar 

  • Robertson J (1856) The purple shore. Household Words, XIV, pp 391–395

    Google Scholar 

  • Rosen B (2009) The mythical creatures bible: the definitive guide to legendary beings. Sterling Pub, Quebec

    Google Scholar 

  • Saeji CB (2012) The bawdy, brawling, boisterous world of Korean mask dance dramas: a brief essay to accompany photographs. Cross Current East Asian Hist Cult Rev 4:146–168

  • See S (2014) The Greek myths. S&T Books, New Delhi

    Google Scholar 

  • Shannon E, Abu-Ghannam N (2019) Seaweeds as nutraceuticals for health and nutrition. Phycologia 58:563–577

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Simek R (2008) A dictionary of northern mythology. Boydell & Brewer, Suffolk

    Google Scholar 

  • Smith W (1853) A new classical dictionary of biography, mythology, and geography. Murray, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Sondak CFA, Ang PO, Beardall J, Bellgrove A, Boo SM, Gerung GS, Hepburn CD, Hong DD, Hu Z, Kawai H, Largo D, Lee JA, Lim P-E, Mayakun J, Nelson WA, Oak JH, Phang S-M, Sahoo D, Peerapornpis Y, Yang Y, Chung IK (2017) Carbon dioxide mitigation potential of seaweed aquaculture beds (SABs). J Appl Phycol 29:2363–2373

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Spence L (1914) The myths of the North American Indians. GG Harrap, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Tarrant RJ (redactor) (2004) P. Ovidi Nasonis metamorphoses. Oxford University Press, Oxford

  • Thurstan RH, Brittain Z, Jones DS, Cameron E, Dearnaley J, Bellgrove A (2018) Aboriginal uses of seaweeds in temperate Australia: an archival assessment. J Appl Phycol 30:1821–1832

    Google Scholar 

  • Tonkin SE (1866) Rostherne mere and other poems. Simpkin, Marshall & Co., London

    Google Scholar 

  • Troell M, Rönnbäck P, Halling C, Kautsky N, Buschmann A (1999) Ecological engineering in aquaculture: use of seaweeds for removing nutrients from intensive mariculture. J Appl Phycol 11:89–97

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Trollope TA (1840) A summer in Brittany, vol 2. H Colburn, Publisher, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Turner NJ (1995) Food plants of coastal first peoples. University of British Columbia Press, Vancouver

    Google Scholar 

  • Turner NJ (2003) The ethnobotany of edible seaweed (Porphyra abbottae and related species; Rhodophyta: Bangiales) and its use by First Nations on the Pacific Coast of Canada. Can J Bot 81:283–293

    Google Scholar 

  • Uris L (1976) Trinity. Doubleday, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Vermeulen SJ, Campbell BM, Ingram JSI (2012) Climate change and food systems. Annu Rev Environ Resour 37:195–222

    Google Scholar 

  • Ward AL (1883) Surf and wave: the sea as sung by the poets. Thomas Y. Crowell & Co., New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Westmoreland PL (2006) Ancient Greek beliefs. Lee & Vance Pub. Co., California

    Google Scholar 

  • Willett W, Rockström J, Loken B, Springmann M, Lang T, Vermeulen S, Garnett T, Tilman D, DeClerck F, Wood A, Jonell M, Clark M, Gordon LJ, Fanzo J, Hawkes C, Zurayk R, Rivera JA, de Vries W, Majele Sibanda L, Afshin A, Chaudhary A, Herrero M, Agustina R, Branca F, Lartey A, Fan S, Crona B, Fox E, Bignet V, Troell M, Lindahl T, Singh S, Cornell SE, Srinath Reddy K, Narain S, Nishtar S, Murray CJL (2019) Food in the Anthropocene: the EAT–Lancet Commission on healthy diets from sustainable food systems. Lancet 393:447–492

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Wood D (2013) Dúlamán. Song of the isles. https://songoftheisles.com/2013/06/25/dulaman/. Accessed 13 August 2019

  • Yeats W (1993) Writings on Irish folklore, legend and myth. Penguin Classics, London

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

The work by OGM is supported by the Nordea Foundation via a centre grant to the research and communication centre Taste for Life.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Instituto Universitario de Investigación Marina (INMAR), Universidad de Cádiz, Av. República Saharaui s/n, 11510, Puerto Real, Cádiz, Spain

    José Lucas Pérez-Lloréns

  2. Department of Food Science, Taste for Life, Design and Consumer Behaviour, University of Copenhagen, 26 Rolighedsvej, DK-1958, Frederiksberg, Denmark

    Ole G. Mouritsen

  3. Irish Seaweed Kitchen, Streedagh House, Streedagh, Grange, Co. Sligo, Ireland

    Prannie Rhatigan

  4. Acadian Seaplants Limited, James S. Craigie Research Centre, Cornwallis, NS, B0S1A0, Canada

    M. Lynn Cornish

  5. Vesrchuren Centre for Sustainability in Energy and Environment, Cape Breton University, Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada

    Alan T. Critchley

Authors
  1. José Lucas Pérez-Lloréns
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Ole G. Mouritsen
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Prannie Rhatigan
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. M. Lynn Cornish
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Alan T. Critchley
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to José Lucas Pérez-Lloréns.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Publisher’s note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Pérez-Lloréns, J.L., Mouritsen, O.G., Rhatigan, P. et al. Seaweeds in mythology, folklore, poetry, and life. J Appl Phycol 32, 3157–3182 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10811-020-02133-0

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10811-020-02133-0

Keywords

Search

Navigation