Just what is a Merlion? It's a mythical creature who is the official mascot of the country of Singapore. It has the head of a lion and the .... The prince's lion head sits on the body of a fish, which is symbolic of Singapore's roots as a fishing village and from which the 'Mer' half of Merlion's name ....

Its name combines “mer” meaning the sea and “lion“. The fish body represents Singapore's origin as a fishing village when it was called Temasek, which means “ .... The Merlion (Malay: Singa-Laut, Chinese: 鱼尾狮, Tamil: மெர்லயன்) is the official mascot of Singapore, depicted as a mythical creature with a lion's head and ....

In effect, the measured message of Thumboo's “Ulysses by the Merlion” has become buried by a recursive debate that tries to fix the Merlion's meaning in place..