Arr maties, summer is nearly over and I do believe I hear the distant sound of sea shanties and cannon fire. Shiver me timbers, could it be? Hoist the mizzenmast, swab the poop deck, and raise the jolly roger! It's International Talk Like a Pirate Day, Thursday, Sept. 19!
International Talk Like a Pirate Day began in 1995 as a joke between two landlubbers. John “Ol’ Chumbucket” Baur and Mark “Cap’n Slappy” Summers were playin’ racquetball when one o' them, "strained something and let out an `Arrrrr!!'”. According to Baur, "We realized we had something, that a national ‘Talk Like a Pirate Day’ was just what the world needed.” The swashbuckling celebration reached international waters in 2002 when the pair emailed humorist Dave Barry. "I have decided to throw my full support behind Talk Like a Pirate Day," Barry wrote in the Miami Herald. With Barry’s blessing, the nautical holiday spread across the Seven Seas.
But ye may be askin’ yerself, “Why is it that pirates talk the way that they do?” Well, matey, it goes back to Treasure Island. Robert Louis Stevenson’s 1888 novel created the popular image of the pirate: peglegs, parrots, and pieces o’ eight. Historical pirates were seldom as colorful as Stevenson’s swashbucklers.
Aye, but what about the voice? When Walt Disney Productions made a movie out o’ Treasure Island in 1950, they cast English actor Robert Newton as Long John Silver. Newton exaggerated his West Country accent to give the pirate a properly seaworthy speech. Newton had a short career playin’ pirates, including Blackbeard, and each time he kept the West Country dialect. Ever since, a West County accent has been the pirate's standard way o’ speakin’.
Robert Louis Stevenson probably would have approved o’ the “pirate voice.” After all, he based Long John Silver on the poet William Ernest Henley, a West Country native. In fact, England’s West Country was home to more than a few famous buccaneers, including Blackbeard. Maybe pirates really did talk that way. I can’t say for sure, but I’ll leave ye with this: British linguist David Crystal has made his life’s work studyin’ the way English people spoke in the Early Modern period. Take a listen’ to Crystal’s son Ben talkin’ with an Elizabethan English accent. Sound familiar? Maybe back then, every day was Talk Like a Pirate Day.
Pirate Books for ye older folks:
So, are ye ready to talk like a pirate? Be ye a landlubber or an ol’ salt, ye can practice yer pirate voice with these books for little lads and lassies from the Alachua County Library District catalog.
Pirate queens : dauntless women who dared to rule the high seas
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A collection of fact-filled profiles, poetry, and illustrations of women pirates who made their mark on the high seas. Each profile includes an original poem presented against a backdrop of full-color art by illustrator Sara Woolley Gomez. The profile is followed by information about the real life and times of these daring women.
Sea queens: women pirates around the world
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Discover such great pirates as Artemisia, the Admiral Queen of Persia who sailed the seas from 500 to 480 BC. At one point there was a 10,000 drachma prize for anyone who could capture her. There was Rachel Wall, who ran away from her strict upbringing and became a murderous pirate terrorizing the waters of the Atlantic coastline of America. She was hanged for her deeds. Possibly the most famous woman pirate of all was Grania O'Malley, daughter of an Irish chieftain. She plagued the English and was arrested several times, always gaining her freedom to pirate some more. Meet ten other female pirates on their ships, in battle, and in disguise in this intriguing look at the wayward women of the waves.
The Whydah: a pirate ship feared, wrecked, and found
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Explore the exciting true story of the captaincy, wreck, and discovery of the Whydah the only pirate ship ever foundand the incredible mysteries it revealed. Launched in 1716 to ply the Triangular Trade route, the Whydah was designed to be fast and to hold large amounts of cargo, both material and human. Captain Prince had completed the sale of slaves brought from Africa to the Caribbean and had turned the Whydah toward England laden with riches when his ship was overtaken by one of the most successful pirates of the time. Black Sam Bellamy sought not only fortune but a ship with a large capacity to carry it. He used the Whydah as his flagship and loaded it to the gunnels with loot from vessels plundered along the East Coast of America. But on a stormy night in 1717, the Whydah ran aground on a sandbar off Cape Cod and sank. Cape Codders salvaged what washed ashore. The governor of Massachusetts sent his best man to look for the rest -- but nothing could be found. It wasn't until 1984 that marine archaeologists found the wreck and its treasure of old and priceless artifacts, as well as a wealth of historical evidence that changed much of what we thought about pirates.
Pirates
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Perfect for curious readers who want a highly visual history book to increase their pirate knowledge, DK findout! Pirates is sure to inspire. Inside, author E. T. Fox breaks down what pirates are, how they live, and why we are so fascinated with them.
With this DK findout! book, you will:
- Encounter swashbuckling pirates and learn how they really lived out on the high seas
- Board a pirate ship to see what they ate, the rules they followed, and the treasure they searched for
- Read about the different types of pirates, including Vikings, 17th century pirates, and modern pirates
- Meet Anne Bonny, Mary Read, and Ching Shih, the tough and infamous women pirates who ruled the seas
- Learn how to read a treasure map
- Hear from historian David Moore, who helped locate the wreck of Blackbeard’s legendary ship in 1996
- Fold out the cover for a pirate quiz and timeline
- and find out much, much more!
Who wants to be a pirate? what it was really like in the golden age of piracy
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Have you ever wanted to be a pirate? To sail the high seas in search of adventure--and maybe some buried treasure? ... Captain Parrot is here to tell you about the life of a real swashbuckler from the Golden Age of Piracy (1650-1730). From danger to the doldrums, [this book] has all the need-to-know facts. And don't worry about walking the plank--strap in for fun and join Captain Parrot's pirate crew!