Look Like A Pirate Act Like A Pirate Talk Like A Pirate

"Fifteen men on the dead man's chest--

...Yo-ho-ho, and a bottle of rum!
Drink and the devil had done for the rest--
...Yo-ho-ho, and a bottle of rum!"

Treasure Island - Robert Louis Stevenson

Pirates talk has become characterised in the modern mind with weird phrases and strange English accents vaguley reminiscent of the the way people talk in Devon, Cornwall and Somerset. Phrases such as Avast - "Avast Ye!" - to stand still, "Shiver me timbers" as an expression of shock and dismay. Of course there was lots of pirate talk to heard in the bars of favourite haunts such as Port Royal the pirate capital of Jamaica in the Caribbean. It was from Port Royal that Captain Henry Morgan launched his attack on Panama.

Talking like a pirate is serious business. Every year on September the 19th is Talk Like A Pirate Day and more Pirate Talk can be found at The Pirates Realm

The word originates from the middle ages and stems from the latin word pirata which means a sailor or sea robber. It is also related to the ancient Greek word peirates which means a brigand. It literally means someone who attacks. Our word 'Peril' also stems from this old Greek word.

"Sea thief or hostis humani generis who to enrich himself either by surprise or open face sets upon merchants or other traders by sea." Charles Molloy.

"One who without lawful authority from any state, attacks a ship with intention to appropriate what belongs to it. The pirate is a sea brigand. He has no right to any flag and is justiciable by all."
J.B.Moore 1906.

One of the prime motivations to become a pirate was the money. Most famously pirates sought Pieces of Eight. These were Spanish silver coins which had the value of 8 Reales. These coins were accepted throughout the known world at the time and were therefore one of the first global currencies.

Many sailors became pirates to avoid the strictures of naval service and also better 'shares'. Whilst all seamen from able seamen up to admirals shared the value of captured shipping even in the official navy the shares as a pirate were greater. The sums of money were relatively huge. It was not unknown for ordinary pirates to get the modern day equivalent of $1 million dollars from a captured ship and its cargo. The temptation to become a pirate was therefore very strong. Many pirates in the 17th century were sailors who had become shipwrecked off Hispaniola in the Caribbean. Therefore they didn't have alot to loose. They got the name Bucanneer from the French word 'boucanier' which refered to smoking meat over an open fire.


"The average man will bristle if you say his father was dishonest, but he will brag a little if he discovers that his great-grandfather was a pirate."

"Better being a commander than a common man"

"In an honest Service, there is thin Commons, low Wages, and hard Labour; in this, Plenty and Satiety, Pleasure and Ease, Liberty and Power"
Black Bart - Pirate Captain - Bartholomew Roberts 17 May 1682 -
10 February 1722

Whilst you might have thought that being a Pirate meant you could behave just as you wished you'd be wrong. Being a pirate means being goverened by strict rules. Often each captain would have his own version of the rules which explained expected conduct, rewards and punishments.

These rules were known as the Pirate Code oo aaaarrrrr! Evidence of the Pirate Code of Edward Low and George Lowther were published in the Boston News Letter. Some of the more interesting rules include:

"He that shall be guilty of Drunkenness in time of Engagement shall suffer what Punishment the Captain and Majority of the Company shall think fit."

"If any Gold, Jewels, Silver, &c. be found on Board of any Prize or Prizes to the value of a Piece of Eight, & the finder do not deliver it to the Quarter Master in the space of 24 hours he shall suffer what Punishment the Captain and the Majority of the Company shall think fit."

Pirates developed a grim and merciless reputation. They had a particular liking for torture as a way of increasing their terrifying reputation. A particular method was known as woolding. This meant tying the victim to a mast. Wrapping a rope around their head and gradually tightening it until their eyes popped out!

Sweating involved making prisoners 'run the gauntlet' down lines of pirates who poked, prodded and slashed at them with sharp weapons.

According to the Pirate Code if you deserted your ship in battle you could be punished by death or marooning.

The primary aim of piracy was gathering treasure. This meant that the easier it was to do this the better. As a result pirates tried to capture vessels with least violence and death as possible. Their reasoning being that if they gained a reputation for murder then resistance would increase making their job much tougher.

This is a picture of Captain Kidd hanging in chains. The fate of most pirates who were not killed in action was execution. A really gruesome tale is that of the execution of 17th century German pirate Klein Henszlein. When he and his 33 man crew were captured they were paraded through Hamburg and all decapitated in the space of 45 minutes!

In England the place where most pirates who were caught ended up was Execution Dock. Pirate deaths were not pleasant at all. Often their hangings resulted in choking to death rather than having the neck broken, and their bodies were left to rot in the sea or tarred and feathered. Execution Dock was located in Wapping London.

Pirates generally had a better than average diet. Lots of fish and fresh fruit.They enjoyed all sorts of exotic food such as pineapples , yams and even dolphin! A favourite meal was Salamagundi or salmagundi, a salad dish popular in the 17th century. A word of French origin it mean 'mixture of things'

No pirate meal of course would be complete without a pirate drink. As well as beer, two pirate favourites were Bomboo a rum based drink and Rumfustian or Ramboozle

Most average pirates dressed in the standard clothes of the era. General attire were known as Slops which comprised an overcoat and knee length breeches. A popular hat at the time was called a Monmouth Cap, a simple woollen cap.

More interesting details can be found here Pirate Clothes

Pretty bad it seems. They had rotten teeth due to lack of vitamin C in their diet. Probably didn't wash very much and that goes for lady pirates too! Mary Read and Anne Bonney were two such lovelies. They met in ironic circumstances. Both disguised themselves as men to get on board. Read took a shine to Bonney who she thought was a man and explained who she really was. Bonney then broke cover and explained she was a woman too!

Crowded spaces and water at a premium for drinking rather than washing meant that being a pirate was quite a smelly occupation.

Sea shanties, the songs of pirates. Most of us know the more famous songs such as Blow The Man Down and Bobby Shaftoe. I really recommend Songs of the Sea to really get you in that pirate mood!

"... the common enemy of all and the law of nations gives to everyone the right to pursue and exterminate them without any previous declaration of war but it is not allowed to kill them without trial except in battle."

A flag with the skull and cross bones on it in most people's minds is known as the Jolly Roger. Historically any black flag was known by the term and each Pirate captain branded their black flag with their own design. The origin of the word 'Roger' has several theories. Some say it comes from an early word meaning 'beggar, others that it refered to an arabic pirate Ali Raja. Whatever the origin as soon as the black was struck there was going to be trouble.

The Jolly Roger

Pirate Treasure Map

Pirates:
A General History of the Robberies and Murders of the Most Notorious Pirates