The Nikker, the Sint and the Sea Devil

The other day I started researching my Zeeland origins. And especially the Zeelandic faith before the arrival of Christianity. My mother was the province Zeeland and I was curious about the knowledge and customs of the former Zeeuwen. And I found these ways.

In many different cultures there are stories of a kingdom in the sea. For example, the Bible speaks of a kingdom deep in the sea, which in the end of time will be destroyed by the Hebrew God. As punishment for deception and malice against the people. For example, the Philistines worshipped the god Dagon, who was human at the top and fish at the bottom (merman).

There are regular news reports from African countries that mermaids cause the necessary problems. There are also whole tribes who worship the water goddess Mami Wata. This is a water Goddess who is worshiped in many places, in various forms. This water gods worship can also be found in places like Suriname, Cuba and Brazil. Scottish and Irish stories also write about mermaids and water spirits. Which even occurred between humans and mermaids.

Because of this I was curious if these stories were also found in the Netherlands and especially Zeeland. The Zeeuwen were sea people and I'm sure they had a different faith and knowledge. Especially before the arrival of Christianity. It's interesting that the same kind of stories appear all over the world, while they lived in completely different places.

My mother used to tell a story that two mermaids warned fishermen. Namely that Middelburg would disappear into the sea by a flood. The warning allowed the Middle-citizens to protect themselves and saved them from death. When my mother was a little girl they said to her, “Be careful not to get too close to the ditch, otherwise Oosje Dick will pull you into the water” or “Be careful not to pull you into the water barrel”. My mother always thought they said this because you wouldn't get too close to the water. But what if the former Zeeuwen had a different acquaintance? An acquaintance that may have been lost over time.