Main Entry: buc·ca·neer
Function: noun
Etymology: French boucanier
1 : any of the freebooters preying on Spanish ships and settlements especially in the West Indies in the 17th century; broadly : PIRATE
2 : an unscrupulous adventurer especially in politics or business
As Webster informs, the term buccaneer is derived from the French boucanier which translates to "a drier of beef". What the....????
Well, back in the Day...
Some of the West Indies islands, especially Hispaniola, were almost overrun with wild cattle of various kinds, and this was owing to the fact that the Spaniards had killed off nearly all the natives, and so had left the interior of the islands to the herds of cattle which had increased rapidly. There were a few settlements on the seacoast, but the Spaniards did not allow the inhabitants of these to trade with any nation but their own, and consequently the people were badly supplied with the necessities of life.
But the trading vessels which sailed from Europe to that part of the Caribbean Sea were manned by bold and daring sailors, and when they knew that Hispaniola contained an abundance of beef cattle, they did not hesitate to stop at the little sea ports to replenish their stores. The natives of the island were skilled in the art of preparing beef by smoking and drying it.
But so many vessels came to Hispaniola for beef that there were not enough people on the island to do all the hunting and drying that was necessary, so these trading vessels frequently anchored in some quiet cove, and the crews went on shore and devoted themselves to securing a cargo of beef - not only enough for their own use, but for trading purposes; thus they became known as "beef driers," or buccaneers.
When the Spaniards heard of this new industry which had arisen within the limits of their possessions, they pursued the vessels of the buccaneers wherever they were seen, and relentlessly destroyed them and their crews. But there were not enough Spanish vessels to put down the trade in dried beef; more European vessels- generally English and French- stopped at Hispaniola; more bands of hunting sailors made their way into the interior. When these daring fellows knew that the Spaniards were determined to break up their trade, they became more determined that it should not be broken up, and they armed themselves and their vessels so that they might be able to make a defense against the Spanish men-of-war.
Thus a state of maritime warfare grew up in the waters of the West Indies between Spain and the buccaneers; and from being obliged to fight, the buccaneers became glad to fight.
- Frank R. Stockton (Buccaneers & Pirates of Our Coast)
