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this post was submitted on 06 Oct 2023
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Is there a reason they don't just say left and right?
Historically, boats had rudders (or “steer boards”) along the side of the ship instead of in the middle like we’d see them today. It was always on the right side of the boat, so to avoid smashing your rudder into the dock, you’d dock your ship on the other side. That means it was always the left side that literally faced the port, while starboard faced out into open water to protect that side from damage.
Steer board => star board?
Maybe. Others have said that when in port the starboard side of the ship is where you would see start out at sea - the port side facing the bright city.
A lot of this is partially lost to history and a guess. I am not enough of a historian to know what the truth is.
"From Middle English sterbord, stere-bourd, stere-burd, from Old English stēorbord, from Proto-West Germanic *steurubord, equivalent to steer + board (“side (of a ship)”), referring to ancient ships with the steering oar set to the right (to accommodate right-handed crew)"
https://en.m.wiktionary.org/wiki/starboard
Correct. Sailors aren’t known for their diction lol