Sea serpent
 A sea serpent from Olaus Magnus's book
History of the Northern Peoples (1555). |
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| Grouping | Legendary Creature |
|---|---|
| Sub grouping | Sea monster |
| Other name(s) | Various |
| Country | Various |
| Habitat | Sea |
A sea serpent or sea dragon is a type of unclassified marine animal either wholly or partly serpentine.
Sightings of sea serpents have been reported for hundreds of years, and continue to be claimed today. Cryptozoologist Bruce Champagne identified more than 1,200 purported sea serpent sightings. It is currently believed that the sightings can be best explained as known animals such as lungfish, oarfish, whales, or sharks (in particular, the frilled shark). Some cryptozoologists have suggested that sea serpents are relict plesiosaurs, mosasaurs or other Mesozoic marine reptiles, an idea often associated with lake monsters such as the Loch Ness Monster.
In Norse mythology, Jörmungandr, or "Midgarðsormr" was a sea serpent so long that it encircled the entire world, Midgard. Some stories report of sailors mistaking its back for a chain of islands. Sea serpents also appear frequently in later Scandinavian folklore, particularly in that of Norway.
In 1028 AD, Saint Olaf is said to have killed a sea serpent in Valldal, Norway, throwing its body onto the mountain Syltefjellet. Marks on the mountain are associated with the legend. In Swedish ecclesiastic and writer Olaus Magnus's Carta marina, many marine monsters of varied form, including an immense sea serpent, appear. In his 1555 work History of the Northern Peoples, Magnus gives the following description of a Norwegian sea serpent:
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