Thursday Trivia Answer! The question: What is the meaning behind these Naval terms? Holystone - The last Navy ships with teak decks were scrubbed with a piece of sandstone, nicknamed as the holystone. Named so because its use would always bring a man to his knees as he would scrub the deck. Scuttlebutt - The origin of this word is nautical parlance for a rumor. It comes from a combination of scuttle - making a hole in the ships hull to cause her to sink, and butt - a cask or hogshead used in the days of wooden ships to hold drinking water. Todays Navy still refers to drinking fountains as scuttlebutts. Three Sheets to the Wind - this term is used to describe someone who has too much to drink. The reference is to a sailing ship in disarray, regarding a ships loose lines flapping loosely in the breeze. Above Board - a term that refers to someone who is honest and forthright. Its origin comes from when pirates would masquerade as honest merchantmen, hiding most of their crew would hide ducked down below the side of the ship. To read more about origins of Naval Terminology visit navy.mil/navydata/traditions/html/navyterm.html
Posted on: Fri, 29 Aug 2014 16:00:01 +0000
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