June 03, 2004

Where There's Smoke ...

This etymological account strikes The Confidence Man as being a bit too whimsical to be true ...

[...] the term buccaneer, a 17th century adventurer or sea
robber, comes from the technique, called "boucan"
[meaning barbecue], of curing meat by smoking it
slowly over a fire, its French practitioners being
called "boucaniers."

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