TORONTO – Arrrr! It’s that time of year again, matey: International Talk Like a Pirate Day.
This year marks the 10th anniversary of its debut.
According to the official website, the idea originated in 1995 during a game of racquetball between two friends. John Baur and Mark Summers, out to lose a bit of weight, began shouting words of encouragement at each other to help keep the momentum of the poorly-played game going.
From “Damn, you bastard!” and “Oh, jeez, my hamstring!”, the two started shouting words of encouragement in pirate slang, using terms such as “cannonade” and “yardarm”.
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After realizing how enjoyable it was to speak in pirate, the two decided the world needed a Talk Like A Pirate Day. The date was set: September 19th, which also happens to be Summers’ ex-wife’s birthday.
The two men celebrated the day on their own for seven years. In 2002, they pitched the idea to Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Dave Barry, who later became the official spokesperson for International Talk Like a Pirate Day.
The official website features everything from a English-to-pirate translator and slang terminology to pickup lines and pirate talk for kids.
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