Ghost story
The weeping sea maiden of Pootsi
On the Pootsi coast, people said, every Midsummer Eve a lovely girl rose out of the sea up to her shoulders, weeping loudly and begging to be rescued. Several young men leapt into the water to save her, and every one of them vanished; a few days later the waves washed their bodies ashore. At last everyone understood that the girl was no one but a water spirit, who took the young men's souls as her bridegrooms while the waves returned their bodies. The story was recorded by Otto Schantz at Pootsi in the 1890s. Pootsi is a village on the coast of Pärnu Bay, south of Tõstamaa.
Open it on the map See the spot on the old maps and as it is today
Eesti keeles
Pootsi rannas räägiti, et igal jaaniõhtul tõusis merest kuni õlgadeni kena neiu, kes nuttis valjusti ja palus end päästa. Mitu noormeest hüppas vette teda päästma ja igaüks neist kadus; mõne päeva pärast uhtusid lained nende surnukehad kaldale. Lõpuks said kõik aru, et kena neiu pole keegi muu kui näkk, kes võttis noorte meeste hinged endale peiuks, laine aga tõi kehad randa. Loo pani 1890. aastatel Pootsis kirja Otto Schantz. Pootsi on küla Pärnu lahe rannikul Tõstamaast lõuna pool.
Source: M. J. Eisen, 'Näki raamat' (no. 54, recorded by O. Schantz, Pootsi) ↗