Is there an international language at sea?

8/18/2014 9:36:27 AM

There have been various attempts to introduce ‘simplified marine English’ (the commonest is Seaspeak), but the reality is that you don’t need to pass any exams, in language or anything else, to become a fisherman, lifeboatman, or (in some places) harbourmaster. English is more widely understood at sea than in the world in general, for a variety of reasons; but it would be unwise to enter a foreign harbour without a phrasebook, at least. (Or, of course, you could resort to speaking English loudly and slowly, putting -o on the end of half the words; let me know how it works.)

12/14/2012 10:46:47 AM

As stated by Karlson, there are some mandates about basic proficiency in English, but the reality can be something quite different.

Some years ago I was sailing from Sicily to Croatia and visited several harbours on the southern shore of Italy. I didn’t find many places where officials would understand a word of English (or Finnish, my native tongue 😉 ), but had to manage with my rusty Italian.

12/13/2012 9:30:07 PM

You can’t really count on Harbor Masters knowing English although International Maritime Organization mandates at the very least a basic proficiency in English and knowledge of Standard Marine Navigational Vocabulary for all people responsible for communicating to ships at sea or ports.

In addition to this I have found Standard Marine Communication Phrases and MarTEL, which seem to suggest that at least some proficiency in the English language is required for all crews operating at sea.

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Hello,My name is Aparna Patel,I’m a Travel Blogger and Photographer who travel the world full-time with my hubby.I like to share my travel experience.

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