In Greek mythology, the naiads (/ˈnaɪædz, ˈneɪædz, -ədz/; Greek: ναϊάδες, translit. naïádes) are a type of female spirit, or nymph, presiding over fountains, wells, springs, streams, brooks ...
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and other bodies of fresh water.
They are distinct from river gods, who embodied rivers, and the very ancient spirits that inhabited the still waters of marshes, ponds and lagoon-lakes such as pre-Mycenaean Lerna in the Argolis.