Recorded Books Inc. - Minding the Light

Language of 19th-Century Nantucket

Many of these nautical expressions have found their way into our modern vernacular, such as feeling blue (when a ship lost its captain during a voyage and would fly blue flags) or crew cut (a short haircut given to the entire ships crew).

ambergris: a waxy, grayish substance found in the stomachs of sperm whales and once used in perfume to make the scent last longer

baleen: the comblike plates of cartilage in a whales mouth to strain plankton and other food from the water; very valuable for its strength and flexibility

boatsteerer/harpooner: crew at the bow of the whaling boat whose job is to spear the whale

broken voyage: a whaling ship that returns home with less than a full load of oil

cooper: barrel maker

cooperage: workplace of the cooper

cranky: an unstable sailing vessel, from the Dutch krengd

crew cut: a short haircut given to the whole crew

cut and run: an act of cutting the anchor line in an effort to make a quick getaway

deep six: a fathom, the unit of measurement for the depth of the sea, is six feet; sailors used the term to refer to throwing something overboard

disowned: under church discipline

elders: historically, those appointed to foster the ministry of the Quaker meetinghouse and the spiritual condition of its members

facing benches: the benches or seats in the front of the meeting room, facing the body of the meeting, on which Friends ministers and elders generally sat

feeling blue: a custom when a ship lost its captain during a voyagethe ship would fly blue flags and have a blue band painted along her hull when she returned to port

fin up: dead

First Day: Sunday (Quakers did not use names for days of the week, nor for the months, as they had originated from pagan names)

First Month: January

flensing: butchering of the whale

Friends and Society of Friends: Quaker church members

forging ahead: a naval term for pressing on

from stem to stern: all-inclusive, very thorough

gam: to visit or talk with the crew of another whaling ship while at sea

gangplank: a movable bridge used to board or leave a ship

greenhand or greenie: an inexperienced sailor making his first whaling voyage

hold in the Light: to ask for Gods presence to illuminate a situation or problem or person

hulk: an old sailing vessel that is no longer seaworthy

idler: a crewman whose tasks required daylight hours (cook, cooper, cabin boy)

lay : the percentage of a ships profit that each crew member receives; a sailors lay usually depends upon his experience and rank

lookout: the sailor stationed in the crosstree to watch for whales

Meeting: Quaker term for church

minding the Light: an expression used to remind Quakers that there is an Inward Light in each of them that can reveal Gods will, if its direction is listened to and followed

mortgage button: a Nantucket tradition of drilling a hole in the newel post of a households banister, filling it with the ashes of the paid-off mortgage, and capping the hole with a button made of scrimshaw; in the south, its called a brag button

moved to speak: an experience, in the quietness of the meeting, of feeling led by God to speak

mutiny: an uprising or rebellion of a ships crew against the captain