Davy Jones's locker

English

Alternative forms

Etymology

There has been much speculation about the origin of this term, but none has been substantiated. See more at Davy Jones' Locker on Wikipedia.

Pronunciation

Audio (AU) (file)

Proper noun

Davy Jones's locker

(nautical, idiomatic) The bottom of the ocean, especially as the grave for sailors. Also a common saying when something goes overboard and is lost.
- 1774, Nicholas Cresswell, The Journal of Nicholas Cresswell, 1774-7:
  "Damn my eyes," says he, "they are gone to Davy Jones's locker."
  
  NOTE: Partridge erroneously refers to this as from the journal of Richard rather than Nicholas Cresswell.
- 1781 August, Isaac Kimber, Edward Kimber, “The Summer Theatre”, in The London Magazine, or, Gentleman's Monthly Intelligencer, volume 50, page 360:
  ... are discovered singing a melancholy duet, bewailing the loss of an honest tar, whom they suppose (to use the burthen of the song) "is in Davy Jones's locker."

Translations

the ocean as a grave for sailors

Finnish: Ahdin valtakunta
French: le grand bouillon m
German: Grab in Meerestiefe n

Italian: Lo scrigno di Davy Jones
Russian: могила моряков (mogíla morjakóv) f
Spanish: el fondo del mar m

See also

Davy Jones' Locker on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
Eric Partridge, A Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English, 8th edition, 1984

This article is issued from Wiktionary. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.