"Customary Phraseology of the Naval Service"

Peter T Yeschenko

From: US Navy site:

GMT!

Trivia:: Why do Sailors use The "Customary Phraseology of the Service" in the Navy?!

ANSWER: Navy Regulations require that all orders were given by Sailors standing watch be given in the "customary phraseology of the service."

This is not merely a matter of preserving tradition but of ensuring that orders are clearly understood and promptly obeyed.

For example, when the officer conning the ship gives an order to change engine speed, he begins with which engine to change, starboard, port, or all, whether forward or back, and by how much, flank, full, one-third, etc.

An engine order might be given "Starboard ahead one-third, port back one-third;" the lee helmsman, who operates the engine order telegraph that sends the instructions to the engine room, repeats the order, adding "aye-aye, sir or ma'am."

Steering orders, by contrast, are given in terms not of starboard and port but as right or left: "right standard rudder," for instance, or "left 20 degrees rudder." Thus, from the first word out of the conning officer's mouth, the entire watch knows whether the change is to engines or steering and in what direction and can start reacting even before the order is completed.

Announcements over the shipboard public address system, the "1MC," are referred to as "passing the word," and for many messages adhere to strict traditional formulas.

At the beginning of the day, the boatswain pipes "All Hands" and passes the word, "Reveille, reveille! All hands heave out and trice up! The smoking lamp is lighted in all authorized spaces."

At the close of the day, he passes the word, "Taps, taps, lights out! All hands turn into your bunks! Maintain silence about the decks!"

But adherence to customary phraseology extends far beyond the requirements of shipboard operations.

It governs almost every element of day-to-day discourse, even ashore. The Marine Corps drill manual does not say that one never lets the flag touch the ground, but that colors are never allowed to touch the deck.

Even in office buildings far from the sea, Sailors habitually refer to walls as bulkheads, ceilings as overheads, halls as passageways, and stairways as ladders.

Moreover, the etiquette of the service has many carefully prescribed formulas by which personnel communicate with each other:

- Junior personnel always close written correspondence with their seniors with the complimentary close, "very respectfully." Seniors sign "respectfully" when writing to juniors.

- A junior officer sending a verbal message to a senior instructs the messenger to present his "respects" to the admiral or captain or whomever; the senior replies by presenting his "compliments."

- Seniors "call" or "direct" attention to something; juniors "invite" attention.

- Seniors "suggest" that something be done; juniors may only "recommend."

- Seniors "direct" juniors to act; juniors "request" seniors to act.

- Juniors acknowledge an order by saying "aye-aye." Seniors acknowledge information conveyed by juniors by responding "very well"--and woe to the junior officer who slips up by saying "very well," even with "sir" appended to it!

 ** Some other Navel phraseology:
The order to continue in a certain situation or condition: would be: to command - " As you were! " :

The order to execute a new position or condition::: "  Upon the command - fill in the blank! "
** These orders must follow is a set format and style  -  which is to keep the process simple and easy to understand commands!