Why Do They Say That?

We have become accustomed to saying things around boats and often do it without knowing why? I will set down a couple of examples and encourage you to add some of your own.

Port and Starboard- Before the aft centered rudder was invented all boats had the steering gear on the right side of the vessel. This was called the "Steer Board" side and through the years the word became corrupted to "Starboard". The other side was the side you wanted to land the boat on when coming into port so you wouldn't break the steering board, so it was called the "Port" side.

Posh - A term we use when talking about very fancy things (eg: Posh Accommodations), was created during the early days of cruising. The best views were reserved for the highest paying customers  and they were Port when going  Out and Starboard when coming Home. POSH = port out, starboard home!