Nautical Terminology

[John Nantz]

From time to time there have been postings that use landlubber terms in lieu of nautical terms but I just came across an ad that takes the cake:MAIN, 110 GENOA, YANMAR DIESEL, ELECTRIC WINDLASS, FULL CANVAS ENCLOSED COCKPIT, AUTO-PILOT, VHF, STEREO, FULL KITCHEN WITH MICROWAVE,FREEZER,REFRIDGERATOR, SINK, 2 BEDROOMS. CAPTAINS QUARTERS HAS QUEEN SIZE BED, DINING AREA, FULL RESTROOM, DIESEL HEAT, xx GALLON DIESEL FUEL TANK, xx GALLON FRESHWATER TANK, MACERATOR NO BROKERS OR DONATION INQUIRIES. ONE MAN SAILING Note: I edited out some of the ad and xx'ed some items to protect the innocent. Otherwise, this is what was posted.For me, this post took the cake, as it were. After reading it I wondered what has become of boating. Isn't this part of the experience of boating? Using proper terminology? Granted, this is an extreme case. In my younger years people prided themselves on using the proper nautical terminology for things but it seems times have changed. Heck, back then everybody used to make fenders out of manila line (the plastic ones weren't available yet) but then that might be dating myself. There were those new to boating 'back then' too, just as now, but today it seems there is much more use of non-nautical terms. For example, "wall" in lieu of bulkhead, "going upstairs" in lieu of going topside, etc.Is this being overly sensitive? Should anyone care? Is the use of landlubber terminology an assult on your boating experience? In boating discussions when someone says they're going upstairs or something about a bedroom I don't correct them but later in the conversation I'll casually use the proper term. We're talking really common, day-to-day terms here, not the esoteric ones that are seldom used. What do you think?

 

[Joe Walworth]

Who Cares

There are medical terms we could use for every part of our body. Do you put your hat on your head or your cranium? Anyway, for me and what I use my boat for, I could care less. If someone wants to know the "proper" nautical term for something I will tell them - if I indeed know it myself.

 

[Dan2296]

Who's the intended audience?

I'm guessing that non-boaters as well as people in the know are the ones he's directed the ad to. After all, he wants to sell and probably doesn't care who buys. What might attract the most lookers, & the female non sailor part of the equation? A 2 bdbroom, 2 bath, condo, on the water with a full kitchen and dining room perhaps?This ad is for the sailor and the first mate it seems to me. The seller wants to get the "point" across. Once sailing they should get familiar with the correct lingo for safety's sake. But sellers need to get the word out.Dan

 

[Brian D]

The proper nautical term for everything...

on a boat is... thingy. Nothing else will do. So, adjust the thingy until I say stop. Actually, I do feel that when talking about my boat I want to use the correct nautical term, and not so generic word. I agree with you John.

 

[Alan]

Who's the intended audience?

I think this add is definitely not directed to a sailor. It is directed to someone seeking a floating condo and knows very little about sailing. Note the fact that there is no relevant info about the sailing gear and equipment on the boat other than what you might expect to find in a condo or townhouse. To a sailor, there are all kinds of unanswered questions. How's the sail inventory? do you have roller furling? how many and what kind of anchors and rode? instruments? EPIRB? MOB module? ...the list goes on.

 

[Ross]

I saw an advert for chartering

27 foot luxury Catalina yachts. I never thought to put 27 foot and luxury yacht in the same sentence. 57 foot maybe but 27 foot???

 

[Ron]

a rose

"a rose, by any other name is still a rose"Yacht - something you call your boat when you are absolutely sure no one you know will ever see it )

 

[Joe]

I don't see anything wrong with the ad.

I've seen a lot worse. But as long as the reader gets the message...who cares? The basic rule of communication is to consider your audience. I used to try and educate guests on my boat by explaning sheets, halyards, etc. but I found that it was easy to confuse and overwhelm them to the point of detracting from the experience on the water. Now I make it a point to try and use layman's terms like left, right, front, back, rope, stick, big sail, steering wheel, etc.... If they want to know the nautical terms I will happily switch into sailor mode.

 

[kendall]

have to agree with the originator,

as with anything it's terminoology that sets the experienced apart from the wannabees,it's a part of the hobby or lifestyle, whichever you care to call it. saying grab the halyard instead of 'that rope over there' is a bit more effective, and sounds better. and besides, I'd realy rather not have any more clueless boaters out there.  I vote we all get together and paint portholes on condos and sell them as boats, then the clueless will have full bragging rights to tell their friends they own a boat, which is what most of them are after in the end. If you were interested in a hobby, you should at least take care to learn the basics before getting involved. ken.

 

[Jake]

Proper Terms

Being a semi-newbie (is that nautical?), I still use the proper terms and I teach my children the same. As a pilot, I've been told that I "drive" the airplane very well. It tends to get on the nerves.Having said that...one term I know all to well is BOAT.Break Out Another Thousand. Hopefully you can share your knowledge to a willing audience.Jake

 

[Ross]

Jake, only if it is an old prop driven

cargo hauler would you drive it everything else you can fly.

 

[Badger N.H.]

I don't use much nautical terminology.

You can't say that only real sailors use the so called correct terms. I see beginers and wannabes using them all the time.What's funny to me are the people who think they're supposed to use military time on a boat. The use of nautical terminoligies came from the big sailing ships of old and somehow it has been nostalgicly handed down over the years to even the smallest boats. I can picture the old sea captain telling the 10 year old boy how to rig and sail his first boat. It's the social aspect of sailing that can't seem to let the words go in modern times. The yacht clubs and racers.But for cruisers the only need for a nautical term is if there is nothing else to call something. Halyard and sheet are good words as are stern and bow, mast, boom, keel, hatch, anchor and dinghy. But there is no need to call a bathroom a head or a bed a berth. My boat has a left side and a right side. My lazerette is a compartment and anchor rode is an anchor line. I'm speaking for myself of course.If you read a lot you can't help but learn the funny words people have used for stuff over the centuries. I see no need for using nautical language on a cruising boat.Naming boats is another tradition from the days of shipping. It should have nothing to do with boats. Most of us don't name our cars or our homes, although some do. My boat doesn't have a name.And don't get me wrong. I love my boats. I love the romance of the sea and of cruising. I often think of the way cruising was in the days before I discovered it in the early 80s and all the way back to its beginings even though my boat and my terminolgy don't reflect much of the past.

 

[Gord May]

Roses, and Craniums, et al

Although "a rose, by any other name is still a rose", I’ll be confused if you call it a daisy.I put my hat on my head, not my cranium (which is the skull, or brain case).My boat also has a left side and a right side, unfortunately left & right change with the viewer’s perspective, whereas port & starboard always refer to the same sides.What’s wrong with precise and accurate communication?

 

[Badger N.H.]

How do right and left change?

If I say tie up to the left side of my boat that would obviously be the port side. If I said turn right you would turn to starboard.What perspective would change anything? Do your right and left hands change if you were to face another direction? How would a boat be any different?

 

[Ross]

Port and starboard refer to places on a boat

you still turn right or left. As in the command, "Come right to 330 degrees " to which to proper responce is "Aye, Aye sir, turning right to 330 degrees." The skipper may then say, "steady as she goes."Your right hand is always you starboard hand and it goes into your starboard pocket. If you put your starboard arm into the port sleeve of your coat and your port arm into the starboard sleeve your coat will button in the back.

 

[Badger N.H.]

Ross, that is the perfect explaination.

.It all makes sense now."Steady as she goes" video by the Raconteurs.http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4801715451966465486&q=%22steady+as+she+goes%22.

 

[Ross]

Badger, Just to pick on one of your

many examples; My boat has many compartments, but if I say that an item is in the lazerette on the port side aft of the battery I have defined precisely the location, but should I say "the item is in the locker back there", I have two compartments accessible from the cockpit, now I will need to get wordy to describe the location . I berth my boat on the hard for the winter in the sailing season it is berthed in slip 436. When my wife was recovering from cancer and we launched the boat for the season she was exhausted from the effort so I got Nancy and the boat into their proper berths.

 

[Badger N.H.]

Locker was actually the word I was looking for.

And the word locker makes more sense proper or not.When my boat is on the hard I say it is hauled out.A settee is a seat.One phrase I can't stand is "cruising kitty"

 

[Ross]

Your boat may be hauled out for a day or

a week but if it is bethed on the hard, it is not a short term haulout. I have a slip neighbor that was berthed on the hard all winter, when he launched this spring he had engine trouble and was hauled out for repairs. He is berthed in slip 435 but is hauled out for repairs. Just definitive distinctions.

 

[Alan]

The "lingo"...

...or nautical speak is just a uniform way for all sailors to understand the exact meaning of what is being said. Calling things by their correct name eliminates confusion and mistakes. In an emergecy situation, that can be an important time and safety factor. I fail to understand why some people resist calling things by the correct terms.