"Many boaters seem to find the word
cabin rather lacking the elegance and significance they associate with their boats. Therefore, they refer to their
cabin as a
salon, a fancy French term for
reception hall or a room filled with perfumed finery.Hairdressers, beauticians, and couturiers have salons; sailors have a
saloon.
The Encyclopedia of Nautical Knowledge defines a
saloon this way: “In a cargo and smaller passenger vessels, the main
cabin, or that serving as a dining-room, assembly room, etc.”
The Oxford Concise Dictionary describes a saloon as a “public room for first-class or for all passengers on ship.”The only dissonant note is sounded by
Webster’s New World Dictionary, which allows the use of both
salon and
saloon but then confesses that saloon is “specifically, the main social cabin of a passenger ship.” Nevertheless, whereas most sailors use the word
saloon, most powerboaters seem to prefer
salon.It’s possible that some boaters use the word
salon because they don’t want their boats to be associated with saloons where strong alcoholic drinks are served and rough
men indulge in fisticuffs. But a better choice than either
salon or
saloon would be
cabin. What could be simpler or more correct?"
