Like many jargons, sailor lingo or slang is a special language consisting of unique idioms and expressions. It was heavily influenced by Italian and Lingua Franca, and it served the crew to communicate secretly among themselves for centuries. It is so advanced that sometimes only another sailor who knows sailor lingo can understand what a sailor is saying. Here we share an incident told by a sailor so that you can measure your familiarity with the subject. Of course, we include a vocabulary at the end of the text, thinking that you will get flustered.

 

"I was lying off at that time. You see, I got flustered and I was wandering around the streets all day. We have a sprat, and I came across him. I saw that he became a steamer going from wind side and to lee. I called out but he didn't hear. I immediately set sail and caught him. He explained as we were getting abreast. As soon as he returned from the cruise, he went in a coffeehouse. First he took a sounding and went, and sat on a deck. He plunk elbow in the hawse. He got some too. On the one hand, he moved into a conversation with an unflagged ship. Apparently, he was an sponger splash. The man edged in with ours, but ours did not dig it. At one point, he went to the bathroom and left his jacket on the chair. He returned and saw that the man had parted a cable, and the jacket was gone. As you can see, he ate the fid. All he remembers is that the man has a rudder nose. The ones on the table were jolly boats. This sprat once made me float, but I felt sorry for him. I looked around but I couldn't find a takaturist, so I took him by the arm and took him to his house legally. I laded a few cents, and of course I gave a bawling out. I heard her singing as he walked out the door."

 

KEYWORDS:

To lie off = To wander around

To get flustered = Not to know what to do

Sprat = Master sailor

Steamer = Drunk

From wind side to lee = Swaying, drunken walking

To set sail = To run in a hurry

Getting abreast = Side by side

To take a sounding = To probe carefully

Deck = Craps table

To plunk elbow in the hawse = To put away all one's money

Unflagged ship = Vagabond

Sponger = Freeloader

Splash = Jerk

To edge in with = To establish closeness for personal gain

To part a cable = To escape

To eat fid = To be in a difficult situation at an unexpected moment

Rudder nose = Crooked nose

Jolly boat = Scam attendant

Takaturist = Motor vehicle, automobile

To float = To dismiss

Lagly = Slowly

To lade a few cents = To give and transfer

To give a bawling out = To scold severely

 

 

REFERENCES:

Big Slang Dictionary, Hulki Aktunç, Yapı Kredi Publications, 2020

 

Vocabulary from Maritime Terms to Slang, Zahide Parlar, Research Article, December 2022