Tounge O' the Seas

Late on Summer evenings in The City of Keelford, the sailors of the town's famous docks head to the Horse and tiller, a rowdy seaman's bar, to swig a tankard of grottney, place wagers, and share stories of the high seas in the noisy taproom. After the work is done, and the boats are docked, you can be sure to see many peculiar folk. Who is that old fellow with the toothy grin, the grey beard, ragged from a thousand storms? Who is that lady with the fine suede coat, aristocratic airs, and a shiny Iron sea ring on her finger? Who is the young man boasting of his swashbuckling exploits in the corner to an inattentive gaggle, as if he were talking to a crowd of hundreds? Is that Captain Radcliffe over there, the glint in his eye just as insane as ever? What stories do these people hold? What are they saying? It is the last question that stumps you. The yells of "It must have gnashed me looters!" and "That'll be your last tossing" are simply gobbledygook to you.

Also called 'Seaman's yelling', Tounge O' the Seas is a type of slang common to, as the name suggests, sailors. Although it is heard all the time in sailing taverns, it is not actually a full language, but a collection of idioms and phrases. These sayings do, however, relate to just about everything. If, like many others, you are stumped by the language of the sailors (no pun intended), allow me to assist. The guide below to some of the most common phrases of this bizarre language may well be your lifeline in the company of sailors.

Etymology of phrases

Here, I will explore the origins of some of the phrases in the sidebar.

"Ye be bucklein' yer belt to the tiller!"

This phrase comes from the fact that, you steer a boat by the tiller, and to do so effectively, you must use your hands. If you use your waist (as with the belt) you can't steer a boat properly. This became a common metaphor for doing something inefficiently.

"That's rusted her ring!"

Most sailors wear a plain iron ring known as an Iron sea ring. This ring is a sort of social indicator of a sailor's skill at sea. A ring that is clear of any rust symbolizes higher reputation and skill than a rust covered one. Therefore, if your clear ring is tainted by rust, your reputation is tarnished.

"Never add seaweed to a well seasoned cobbit!"

A cobbit is a simple sailor's stew of dried vegetables and salted meat. It is known to most sailors that the best cobbit is a simple one - well seasoned as the recipe suggests. To add seaweed would be to over-complicate the already (at least to the sailors) perfectly balanced dish. That explains the first meaning. The second comes from the rare use of seaweed salt in a cobbit. This is a strongly flavored salt distilled from seaweed. Although it lends extra much needed flavor to the dish, you should never use it in conjunction with sea salt as the resulting dish will be far too salty, even for sailors. Enough is enough.

"That's yer last tossing!"

Here, tossing is used in the context of being tossed at sea. The phrase is used to imply that is you do something stupid on a voyage, it's bound to be your last.

"He's oiled his ring!"

As mentioned above, the absence of rust on an Iron sea ring is an indicator of your skill as a sailor. However, some less skilled sailors try to imply that they are better than they really are by coating their rings in oil, thus protecting them from rust - a form of cheating, and this is what it has come to mean.

Geographical Distribution

Sailor speak is found almost anywhere with a connection to the sea, although versions may vary by region. Not found in landlocked areas.

Common Phrases

The most common idioms that you can expect to hear are listed below.

• "Buckling ye belt to the tiller" : To complete a task inefficiently

• "I think he's oiled his ring!": I suspect he's cheating!

• "Gnashed me looters!": Foiled my plan!

• "Never add seaweed to a well seasoned cobbit": Don't complicate things / enough is enough

• "That's rusted her ring": That's tarnished her reputation.

• "That's yer last tossing!": I've had enough of you! / If you do something as stupid as that, you deserve what you get.

• "The break of the rudder": The point of no return.

• "What's in yer hold?": What's on your mind? / What are you keeping from us? / Are you ok?

• "The griffon ain't fishing": It doesn't work / It doesn't matter.

• "I'll be by the crack of the timber...a duel": I challenge you to a duel (can be used with any serious challenge)