Jackspeak of the Royal Canadian Navy

Crow's Nest

Specifically a masthead constructed with sides and sometimes a roof to shelter the lookouts from the weather, generally by whaling vessels, this has become a generic term for what is properly called masthead. The term is derived from the Norse who carried cages of crows or ravens at the masthead. When the ship lost sight of land, they would release one of the birds and then sail in the same direction as the bird toward the nearest land.

Added: 2014-11-01 Last modified: 2014-11-01