Buccaneering
/ˌbʌkənˈɪərɪŋ/noun
Engaging in piracy, especially in the Caribbean, or acting in a boldly adventurous and unconventional way.
Did you know?The earliest buccaneers were Caribbean hunters who preserved meat on a wooden framework called a boucan; many later became privateers or pirates.
Etymological Timeline
Pre-European Caribbean
Caribbean/Tupian source
boucan
“A wooden framework used for smoking or drying meat; the ultimate source is associated with Indigenous Caribbean terminology, though its precise linguistic origin is debated.”
17th Century
French
boucanier
“A person who smoked meat on a boucan, especially a hunter living in the Caribbean.”
17th Century
English
buccaneer
“A Caribbean hunter or meat-smoker; the term soon came to mean a pirate or sea raider.”
17th–18th Century
English
buccaneering
“The activity or practice of acting as a buccaneer, particularly piracy or maritime raiding.”
Modern English
English
buccaneering
“Piracy, or boldly adventurous and unconventional behavior more generally.”