September 19 is International Talk Like a Pirate Day. According to Chase’s Calendar of Events, it is “a day when people everywhere can swash their buckles and add a touch of larceny to their dialogue by talking like pirates: for example, ‘Arr, matey, it be a fine day.’ While it’s inherently a guy thing, women have been known to enjoy the day because they have to be addressed as ‘me beauty.’ Celebrated by millions on all seven continents.”
You can learn more about how two average guys started this holiday on June 6, 1995 on a racquetball court in a YMCA in Albany, Oregon here. It didn’t gain a lot of attention until humor columnist Dave Barry wrote about it in a 2002 article. The rest, as they say, is hist -arrrr-y.
Mango Languages, one of the language learning databases to which the Davenport Public Library subscribes, will be offering lessons on how to talk pirate through Sept 19. To access Mango languages, click here. Or, you can go to www.davenportlibrary.com, click on Research Tools, then Online Resources and scroll down until you get to Mango Languages. You’ll need to create a profile using your library card number. Once you’re in, find the search box (it has a magnifying glass icon next to it) and type “Pirate.” You’ll be taken to a page with options such as:
- Call Someone Names
- Express Surprise
- Give Sailing Commands
- Greet a Friend or Superior
- Pay a Compliment
- Invert the Simple Sentence Structure
- Understand the Usage of Be
- Use the 2nd Person Pronoun Ye
- Use Me as a Possessive
Alas, have a fine day, mateys!