Oarfish are “large, greatly elongated, pelagic Lampriform fish comprising the small family Regalecidae.”
In fact, one such “large, greatly elongated” species of oarfish, the Regalecus glesne or King of Herrings, is the longest bony fish on record, growing up to 11 meters long.
(The whale shark, Rhincodon typus, is longer but cartilaginous.)
The family name Regalecidae is derived from the Latin regalis, meaning royal:
The tapering, ribbony silver bodies of oarfish — together with an impressive, pinkish to cardinal red dorsal fin — help explain the perception of majesty taken from rare encounters.
Oarfish are rarely encountered and even more rarely encountered alive. They tend to linger at the surface or to beach themselves only when sick or dying, but these rare encounters may have led to stories of sea serpents.
Recently though an oarfish beached itself on the California coast: