This story was originally published in September 2014.

Ahoy, mateys! 'Tis time to flap yer jaws like a buccaneer.

Rough translation: Hello, friends. It's International Talk Like a Pirate Day.

On Friday, the holiday will be celebrated around the world, so you still have a couple of days to brush up on your pirate words.

Kyle Gonce, 10, did just that at a playful class last week at the Howard County Library's Glenwood Branch in Cooksville, Maryland.

"I learned that 'shiver me timbers' means 'holy cow,'" he said.

"And 'landlubber' means someone on land," added his brother Spencer, 7.

Even the instructor, Jean Boone, got into the swashbuckling spirit. Her name tag read "Jean Lafitte," the name of a fierce pirate who lived 200 years ago. He was a man, but, Boone pointed out, "sometimes women were pirates, too."

"This is the easiest holiday to get ready for," said John Baur, who, with his friend Mark Summers, started the holiday 19 years ago. "You don't have to buy presents or wear fancy clothes." (Of course, an eye patch, a bandanna and a big, black belt add to the fun.)

At first, the two men celebrated by calling friends on the phone and yelling "aarrr" (a favorite pirate word). But each year more and more people got involved. In 2002, a famous writer named Dave Barry published a funny newspaper story about the holiday. "It became really big then," Baur said by phone from his home in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Even though real pirates were often dangerous outlaws, International Talk Like a Pirate Day is "funny and kind of silly," Baur said. "People can swagger and bellow and have a good time."

Part of the fun is to give yourself a pirate name. It could belong to a pirate from the past or be completely made up. Baur calls himself Ol' Chumbucket and Summers goes by Cap'n Slappy. They sometimes perform together, singing sea chanteys, telling jokes and teaching basic pirate vocabulary.

Most of the time, the men work at "real" jobs. Baur is a journalist; Summers is a social worker at a school in Oregon. But come Friday, they will be celebrating in fine pirate style. Summers will toast the holiday with a mug of grog (a favorite pirate drink). Baur will swagger down to the local Krispy Kreme for a box of free doughnuts. (Editor's note: Krispy Kreme is not offering free doughnuts on Talk Like a Pirate Day 2017. )

After attending the library class, Kyle and Spencer are ready for the holiday. They have doubloons (pirate treasure) and new eye patches. And they plan to share a few pirate words with friends at their school, Bushy Park Elementary in Glenwood.

— Mary Quattlebaum

If you celebrate

What: International Talk Like a Pirate Day

When: Friday, September 19

Where: All over the world. All you have to do is speak using pirate words — at home, at school, on the street.

More information: Ask a parent if you can visit talklikeapirate.com.

Ol' Chumbucket and Cap'n Slappy's favorite pirate words

Aarrr!: Pirate exclamation, expresses feeling

Ahoy: Hello

Avast: Stop and pay attention

Davy Jones's locker: The bottom of the sea

Huzzah: Pirate cheer

Loot: Treasure taken from others

Matey: Friend

Scurvy dog: An insulting name

Weigh anchor: Prepare to leave

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