Like “(God) strike me dead” and “blow me down”, shiver me timbers was rare by the mid 1800s and is never encountered these days – except on September 19. They are modelled along the lines of frightful curses like “Gorblimey” (a truncated version of “May God blind me”) and “Drat” or “Rats” (innocent sounding expressions until you realise they’re disguised forms of “God rot them”).Īcclaimed actor Robert Newton built the pirate brand in films like Treasure Island and Black Beard. There was undoubtedly a bit of word play going on with these mock oaths - the idea being something like “may my wooden leg (or ship) fly into small pieces!”.
The term “shiver” meant “to splinter” (by happy coincidence, English has another verb “shiver” with equally appropriate “quiver, tremble” senses).
It was also a nautical expression for the pieces of wood making up the ribs or frames of a ship’s hull. Timber was a slang term for “wooden leg” (“timber toe” meant “man with a wooden leg”). Oi! We're not lazy yarners, so let’s kill the cringe and love our Aussie accent(s) Making many regular appearances on September 19 are expletives like “timbers”, “shiver me timbers” and “sash me timbers” – all nautical exclamations from the late 18th century. The books and movies that launched the pirate brand all those years ago have acted like artificial life support systems for expressions that otherwise would have long bitten dust. Together with the skull-and-crossbones logo, this accent built the pirate brand. His portrayal of Long John Silver and Blackbeard in 1950s films set the gold standard for pirate voices on the screen – including the “arr”. Captain Kidd hailed from Scotland, Black Bart from Wales, William Burke from Ireland and Edward “Ned” Low from London.Ĭaptain Kidd's 'treasure' found in Indian Ocean – but this is no haul in pirating termsīut it was Dorset-born Robert Newton – acclaimed actor and patron saint of Talk Like A Pirate Day – who set the fashion for pirate-speak. True, south-western England produced well-known pirates like “Black Sam” Bellamy and “Long Ben” Every, but famous pirates came from all over. The signature pirate voice is West Country (or some version of it). You may already know how to talk like a pirate, but can you dance like one?
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