Talk like a Pirate Day
Talk Like A Pirate Day
If you’re going to open your lips and say something you might as well sound cool doing it! That’s why Talk Like A Pirate Day is so much fun. It happens every year on September 19th. So, sip some rum, string together some Aaarrrghs and Yo Ho Ho Ho’s and you’ll do just fine.
The funny thing about Talk Like A Pirate Day is that is shouldn’t exist! Why is that, you ask? Real Pirates never spoke that way! Real Pirates were from all over the world, so they spoke in their native language and accent. If you were a Pirate from France you spoke French, if you were from Spain, Spanish and so on. Just because you became a Pirate doesn’t mean you changed the way you spoke. So technically you are and have been talking like a pirate your entire life!
You can thank the English actor named Robert Newton for creating the Pirate way of speaking. He was from the western region of Great Britain and had a unique way of talking. He played the role of Long John Silver in Walt Disney’s adaptation of Treasure Island in 1950. Robert played up his natural accent and he liked to drink as well, so all those things combined to give us the “Aaaargh matey, walk the plank you scallywag” way of speaking. He played other Pirate roles in the movies in the 1950’s and spoke the same way, thus creating the Pirate dialect that everyone uses today. So, have some rum and enjoy Talk Like A Pirate Day, knowing that real Pirates never spoke that way. If you want to explore real Pirate history then check out our Pirate guided walking tours of the French Quarter. Book Now!
