And through all of this, all I can think of is "There's Klingons on the starboard bow, starboard bow, starboard bow."
Why do ships use “port” and “starboard” instead of “left” and “right?”
241–250 of 636 posts
Re: Why do ships use “port” and “starboard” instead of “left” and “right?”
#242Earlier quoted context omitted.
They say that it's because "left" and "right" depend on your orientation (it would perhaps be confusing to talk about "the left side of the boat" if you're facing the stern (rear) and the side in question is on your right). It's probably a similar reason people talk about the "driver's side" and "passenger's side" of a car instead of the left and right sides.
OK but what if you don't know their car is starboard-side drive?
Nearside (near the kerb) and offside (the other side).
Re: Why do ships use “port” and “starboard” instead of “left” and “right?”
#243Earlier quoted context omitted.
bow, boom, tack, hitch, tiller, helm, etc :)
How many of these have common non-nautical uses? I don't think I ever use any of these terms, or hear anyone else use them, in common speech.
Generally agree although there's a case for "taking a different tack".
Re: Why do ships use “port” and “starboard” instead of “left” and “right?”
#244In the US Navy, helm orders are given as left/right, not port/starboard.
Re: Why do ships use “port” and “starboard” instead of “left” and “right?”
#245Earlier quoted context omitted.
What are some examples? I am English but I know nothing about the maritime world, so I likely know the words as slang/vernacular terms but not what they mean on a ship.
To rig something up, to go overboard, to leave something in your wake.
It's interesting that farming/agriculture and sailing both have left the legacy of their words into the language. It goes to show how important these industries are to civilization.
Re: Why do ships use “port” and “starboard” instead of “left” and “right?”
#246Because you need to differentiate between "my left when facing the boat" and "my left when on the boat facing forward" or really, left from any other perspective. And any time there's a multi-word phrase like that that gets used a lot over many years, it gets shortened.
I remember thinking why didn’t they just use “boat left” or something, but then at the sailing coarse I took, I remember there was a boat heading toward us and I was skippering, had to communicate exactly how I wanted to pass the other ship - and saying “to port” was just soo simple and easy - a “to our boats left” would have been way too long and you had to communicate things quite quickly… That’s when it “clicked” how useful this shorthand really was.
Re: Why do ships use “port” and “starboard” instead of “left” and “right?”
#247I wish they gave or examples as to why simple left and right would be confusing, and how port and starboard are different and better. Maybe because I'm from a landlocked country, but this article didn't help me understand the why .
No different than a house - you don't refer to the Left Wing, but the West Wing.
Re: Why do ships use “port” and “starboard” instead of “left” and “right?”
#248Earlier quoted context omitted.
bow, boom, tack, hitch, tiller, helm, etc :)
How many of these have common non-nautical uses? I don't think I ever use any of these terms, or hear anyone else use them, in common speech.
I hear people use "at the helm" and "change tack" to mean being in charge of something and changing direction or approach, respectively. People also "hitch themselves" to things, although I'm not sure that comes directly from the nautical usage.
Re: Why do ships use “port” and “starboard” instead of “left” and “right?”
#249It's interesting to compare how different professions handle the ambiguity in left/right. In the maritime world they went with an approach at one extreme, where they just use two completely separate words, "port" and "starboard." (Though that's far from the only case where there's a special word for something on a boat.) At the other extreme you have the medical profession where the first thing you learn in medical s…
> At the other extreme you have the medical profession where the first thing you learn in medical school is that left/right always refer to the patient's perspective. Didn't know that! So how pervasive is this principal? Would it apply to a descriptive reference to a diagram in a book for example?
After all, doctors are humans and also have a body. It would be strange for them to write books saying that the heart is [#] on the right side when they have it on their left, etc.
[%] usually, because this is HN
Re: Why do ships use “port” and “starboard” instead of “left” and “right?”
#250Earlier quoted context omitted.
It's also pretty cool that a ton of sailing vocabulary has made its way into common English vernacular. I guess with the UK being the most powerful country in the world at one time (and projecting their power via their Navy) it's not too surprising.
What are some examples? I am English but I know nothing about the maritime world, so I likely know the words as slang/vernacular terms but not what they mean on a ship.
One I like is the phrase "the tell-tale signs", which refers to a sailing boat's tell-tales. These are small strings attached to the sails to indicate if the sail needs to be trimmed for optimal performance.