Meaning and history
Melusine is a medieval French legendary name of uncertain etymology. In European folklore, Melusine is a woman or water spirit who assumes a serpent or fish-like form, usually under a secret condition imposed on her husband. Jean d’Arras’s fourteenth-century prose romance helped establish her story and linked her to the Lusignan dynasty. A historical bearer was Melusine von der Schulenburg, Duchess of Kendal and longtime companion of Britain’s George I.