THE READERS’ DICTIONARY OF SAILING SHIP TERMINOLOGY ___________________________________________________________________________ THE READERS’ DICTIONARY OF SAILING SHIP TERMINOLOGY ___________________________________________________________________________ 106 107 THIS DOCUMENT IS THE PROPERTY OF PETER TURNER ©2024 THIS DOCUMENT IS THE PROPERTY OF PETER TURNER If any reader can provide information, please send to galf@abandos.com If any reader can provide information, please send to galf@abandos.com Kickling string – The cord that is worked through the gills of herring to carry them. Kid – 1. Metal dish for carrying food from the galley. 2. To signify something and signal it. 3. A tub. Kiddle - Wicker fish-basket. Kid - Gloves Kidney dagger – 16c seamen’s weapon, named after the place in the belt where it was kept. Kidney Pads - (leather, for the lash) Kids – The compartments used to hold the catch in fishing vessels. Kill Devil, Killdevil - Rum, an alternative name, coined originally by slaves. Killick - A type of stone anchor, or other old anchor or just a small stern anchor. The term came to apply to any leading seaman or leading hand, because of his fouled anchor sleeve badge. King spoke - The spoke on a steering wheel, usually marked, that indicates the rudder is amidships when the spoke is vertical. Kink – A tight bend or loop in a rope, caused by its having been twisted too hard or carelessly drawn from a coil. Kilderkin - 18 gallon cask. King Post - King's Bedchamber, The - Seamen’s' slang for the Spithead area, because it was so safe. King's Bounty - King's (or Queen's) Hard Bargains - 1. Useless sailors. 2. Quota men. King's Letter Boys - Established in 17th Century by Samuel Pepys, modified in 1730 to RN Academy, Plymouth. King spoke - The spoke of the steering gear, marked with a brass cap, that indicates when it is vertical that the helm is amidships. King's Ship - King's (Queen's) shilling - The bounty paid to a volunteer on enlisting. This was sometimes found in the bottom of a proffered pint of ale, the acceptance of which meant the recipient had volunteered, albeit involuntarily. King's Yarn - Kintal - See Quintal. Kippage - An old term, from equipage, meaning the equipment of a ship, including the crew. A ship and its kippage. Kit - See Mess Kit. Kitchen boat - A small boat or ship, equipped to cater for royalty or similar dignitaries, on a cruise in ships that were less suitable for the cooking parts, which were often considered important. Kites - Small light good weather sails set at extremities of studding sails*, but more usually confined to the unusual Skysails. Kites - SMS Knarr - Viking merchantman. Knave - of wheel. (tge) Knee - An angled timber piece used to connect the beams of a ship with her sides or frames. They were sometimes arranged at different angles to suit their natural shape or to accommodate a gun port. See also lodging and hanging knees. Knee of the head - The cutwater or foremost part of the stem, which is in the form of a widening leading edge, to assist in parting the waters as a vessel moves forward, fixed to the bows by means of the cheeks of the head. This also supports the figurehead. Knees - Knee timber - An alternative name for a wooden bracket, or knee. Knight heads, knightheads - Two heavy timbers mounted just behind the foremast, one on each side of the stem, supporting the bowsprit which is fixed between them, the ends of the windlass and, sometimes, as bitts for the anchor cable. Originally carved with the heads of knights. Also called bollard timbers. Knights of Malta, The – An order formed younger sons of aristocratic European Catholic families to fight the ‘Eternal War’ against Islam. Knittle – A small line made of two or three rope yarns twisted hard together between thumb and finger, with the twist of the rope starting in the middle and the ends whipped. Also nettle. Knittle-reefed - ERR Knob – An officer or other member of the upper class, from ‘noble’, used in disrespectful way. Knock down - Take something apart, such as a used cask. Knock out – The order given on a trawler, to knock out the pin of the towing block and so release the warp, in preparation of hauling the net. Knock the gilt off the gingerbread - Spoil a joke by coming in with the punch line out of turn. Knot - The unit of speed of a vessel under way. 1 knot = 1 nautical mile per hour = 1.151 land miles per hour. From the use of the knotted log line to determine a vessel’s speed. The use of the phrase "knots per hour" is a certain indicator of the user's lack of familiarity with matters nautical. Known position – A vessel’s position determined by reference to seamarks or landmarks. Know the ropes - Seamen's slang understanding the rigging, fully, from which it came to mean being experienced, especially to know all the dodges. Knuckle – 1. A sharp angle in one of a vessel's frame members. 2. A sharp bend in a jetty or the edge of the pier-head, from which a ship turned with the tide to depart. Hence, when a ship was 'on the knuckle' she was ready to leave. 3. In the 19c the customary salute was to touch the clenched fist to the forehead in acknowledgement of having received an order. ‘Knuckle under’ came to mean, getting on with something. Knuckle-timbers - The foremost cant frames, in the bow. Koff - Overflow fish-well towed behind peterboat, or similar welled fishing-boat, comprising perforated wooden container with opening in top. Kreng – A whale carcass with all blubber stripped off and the head emptied of spermaceti; left to float away from whaler. Krengers – Whaler crewmen who did the initial trimming of a carcass. Krennel – A small rope cringle, used for the bowline brindles on a square sail. Kuff - A two-masted full-bodied coastal cargo ship with well rounded hull ends and with pronounced bow and stern sheer, used on Dutch/ Belgian coasts during 18 and19c. Kurnowic purposes - ? Smuggling. Kye - Navy nickname for chocolate and for a hot Kaaied sprit - ERR Kallebogas - Mixture of rum, sugar and small beer, after a similar North American drink. Also sometimes Callbolus. Kanaka - Slang for a Pacific Islander. Karfar - Viking warship. Kauri Pine - Great mast timber from New Zealand after 1804. Kaus - A winter wind in the Persian Gulf. Kayar - Coconut fibre rigging, from rind of the nut, used by Lascars. Keckling –Canvas and rope protection of anchor cable against seabed chafing. Kedge – A small (5cwt) anchor first introduced late 18c, used as a secondary anchor, supportive to the bower anchor in bad holding ground. Also used to move a ship around inside a harbour, by laying it out by boat and drawing the ship to it by means of the capstan – an evolution known as kedging. Kedge forelock - (hgv) Kedger - Beggar Kedging Free - Kedging - SMS Keel - The principal length of timber in a ship, running fore and aft and supporting the entire structure and frame of the ship. Usually the first component laid in shipbuilding and comprising several shorter lengths of timber joined together by means of scarf joints. Keel band, or stem band – The metal strip running up a boat’s stem. Keel-Barge - Keel blocks – Short heavy timber blocks used to support the keel of a vessel in dry dock. Keel hauling, keel dragging – 1. The old form of naval punishment in which a weighted victim was hoisted up a yardarm with a rope attached to him that had been passed under the ship, dropped into the sea, dragged under the ship, across the barnacle-infested hull and hoisted up to the opposite yardarm, half drowned. Sometimes a cannon, the rogue's gun, was fired over his head, just to add to the discomfort. 2. It became seamen's slang for a dire threat of reprisal, so, in common language, someone who is keel-hauled has to undergo a great hard ship. Keelman - Keel plate - One of the plates of a flat plate keel. Keels - Flat bottom boats. Keelson, kells'n - The internal keel mounted over the floor-timbers immediately above the main keel, to provide additional strength to the structure. Keelson board - The relatively heavy timber secured inside the centreline of a boat, above the floors, to hold the mast steps and the thwart pillars. Keel staple - Metal staples, usually of iron or copper, used to hold together the false keel and the keel. Keep her away – A helm order given when the conner wanted to warn the helmsman that he was too close to the wind. Also ‘no nearer’, or ‘no near’, or ‘keep her full’. Keep her full – A helm order given when the conner wanted to warn the helmsman that he was too close to the wind. Also ‘no nearer’, or ‘keep her away’, or ‘no near’. Keep her so – A helm order given when the conner wanted the vessel to continue sailing in the present direction when sailing close-hauled. Also ‘very well thus’, or ‘very well dyce’, or ‘thus’. Keep off – To ensure that a vessel keeps away from the land or another vessel. Keep the land aboard – (v) To sail along within sight of the land. Keep your luff – A helm order given when the conner wanted the vessel to come closer to the wind. Also ‘luff’, or ‘keep your wind’, or ‘spring the luff’. Keep your wind – A helm order given when the conner wanted the vessel to come closer to the wind. Also ‘keep your luff’, or ‘luff’, or ‘spring the luff’. Keg - Keckling - Type of cable protection comprising a small rope wrapped in the grooves of the cable. cf serving, parcelling, worming, rounding, platting, link worming. Kelter - Seamen's term for all in order and in good condition. Kelvin sounding machine - A more recent mechanised sounding machine that both measured the wire line run out and the amount of water collected in the sounder. Kemp - A comb. Kenning – The early Scottish expression for the approximate distance high land could be seen from the sea, which varied between 14 and 22 miles. Kenning glass - See Spy glass. Kentladge, Kentledge – Permanent iron ballast. Kerling - The mast step in Viking ships. Kern - To make into grains or granulate. Kersey Jacket - Early common attire. Ketch - A two-masted fishing and coastal cargo ship first built about mid 17c in which the mainmast is fairly central with the mizzenmast well aft, but afore the tiller. Kettle - A basket submerged for fishing, originally corrupted from keddle. Hence the common expression about fine kettles of fish. Kevel block - See Kevel Head. Kevel, cavil – A thick horizontal timber bolted to a partner to form a large cleat at a ship's sides, used for belaying large ropes. Kevel head - The top extension of a frame member, raised above the level of the gunwale, used as a kevel. Kevel (knight) - ERR Khamsin - A hot, dry, dust laden Southerly wind in the Red Sea and near Egypt. Kharif - A SW wind near Berbera, that blows from 2200 until noon. Kicking strap – The American term for a rope fastened across the clumsy cleat under which the whale-line passed to keep it in place. K Keels and Knots
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