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BERTH

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Originally appearing in Volume V03, Page 811 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.
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BERTH , originally a nautical See also:

term, probably connected with the verb " to See also:bear," first found in literature at the end of the 16th See also:century, with the alternative spelling " See also:birth." Its See also:primary meaning is " See also:sea-See also:room," whether on the high seas or at See also:anchor. Hence the phrase " to give a wide berth to," meaning " to keep at a safe distance from," both in its literal and its metaphorical use. From meaning sea-room for a See also:ship at anchor, " berth " comes to mean also the position of a ship at her moorings (" to berth a ship "). The word further means any See also:place on a ship allotted for a See also:special purpose, where the men See also:mess or See also:sleep, or an See also:office or See also:appointment on See also:board, whence the word has passed into colloquial use with the meaning of a situation or employment. From the Icelandic byrdi, a board, is also derived the ship-See also:building term " berth," meaning to board, put up bulk-heads, etc.

End of Article: BERTH

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