skins. Both the clothes and kayaks would lose buoyancy when saturated and would need to be dried out. It is thought that sightings of Inuit divesting themselves of their clothing or lying next to the skins on the rocks could have led to the belief in their ability to change from a seal to a man. Another belief is that shipwrecked Spaniards were washed ashore, and their jet-black hair resembled seals. As the anthropologist A. Asbjørn Jøn has recognised, though, there is a strong body of lore that indicates that selkies "are said to be supernaturally formed from the souls of drowned people". Modern treatments Scottish poet George Mackay Brown wrote a modern prose version of the story, entitled "Sealskin". In popular culture Selkies—or references to them—have appeared in numerous novels, songs and films, though the extent to which these reflect traditional stories varies greatly. Work where selkie lore forms the central theme include: A Stranger Came Ashore, a 1975 young adult novel by Scottish author Mollie Hunter. Set in the Shetland Islands in the north of Scotland, the plot revolves around a boy who must protect his sister from the Great Selkie. The Secret of Roan Inish, a 1994 American/Irish independent film based on the novel Secret of the Ron Mor Skerry, by Rosalie K. Fry. The film's story follows a young Irish girl, Fiona Coneely, who uncovers the mystery of her family's selkie ancestry, and its connection to her lost brother. Selkie, a 2000 Australian made-for-TV film. Ondine, a 2009 Irish film in which a woman caught in a fishing net is believed to be a selkie. Song of the Sea, a 2014 Irish animated film about a young boy who discovers his mute sister is a selkie who must find her voice and free the faerie creatures from the Celtic goddess Macha. See also Bucca (mythological creature) Finfolk Kelpie Mermaid Merman Swan maidens Explanatory notes References Bibliography (translated from the German) Further reading External links Aos Sí Fairies Fantasy creatures Female legendary creatures Irish folklore Irish legendary creatures Legendary mammals Merfolk Mythological aquatic creatures Mythological human hybrids Orcadian culture Scottish folklore Scottish legendary creatures Witchcraft in folklore and mythology Shapeshifters Therianthropes Shetland culture Scandinavian legendary creatures Tuatha Dé Danann Water spirits