FLOTSAM AND JETSAM

Jetsam refers to any of a ship’s gear or cargo that is purposely thrown overboard in an emergency. The term is derived from the word "jettison", and refers to all items sacrificed to lighten the ship, whether those items sink or float. Flotsam describes floating debris from a shipwreck at sea.

BAGGYWRINKLES

Even without knowing the meaning of this term, you have to admit this one is really charming. To get the meaning, you have to picture the sails sometimes filled and drawing hard against the shrouds, or sometimes slapping against the standing rigging during a tack or when the wind shifts suddenly. That kind of friction will wear out the sails, and cause tears and holes. To protect the sails, seamen used to improvise chafing gear out of old rope, wrapping it around the shrouds so that the strands stick out, providing a soft cushion for the sails. That chafing gear is called baggywrinkles.

BUCCANEER

One of the SeaTalk contributors, John Hutchinson, suggested that we provide more information about this term. It comes from the French word "boucan" meaning smoked meat. Back in the 17th Century, freebooters used to stop at islands in the Caribbean and poach cattle, then preserve the meat by smoking it for their own use and for resale at the market. The French word for smoke is "boucane", and the smoked meat was called "boucan". The scoundrels who engaged in this trade in stolen meat were known as "boucaniers". When the term was Anglicised, it became "buccaneers". They were the forerunners of the pirates of the Caribbean.

AVAST

Here's an archaic term often used in pirate movies: "Avast, me hearties!" Probably the script writers had no idea what this meant; it just sounded nautical. In fact the term comes from the Dutch, and means "hold fast!" It's good to know the term, but don't use it, unless you don't mind sounding foolish.

ABOVE BOARD

Today, above board means without deceit or trickery, and the term comes right out of the seafaring traditions. The board refers to the topmost plank in the siding, and that important slab of wood shows up in numerous seafaring terms, such as on board, overboard, inboard, by the board and others. Back in the days of the buccaneers, when a pirate ship approached another vessel at sea, most of the crew would hide below so that there appeared to be no threat. On the other hand, when the crew could be seen "above board", that signified they were not being deceitful about their intentions.