If all ships are she, not he, then why do so many of them have boy names?

Question

If all ships are she, not he, then why do so many of them have boy names?

Answer 1

Actually, in most of the world, Russia excepted, ships and boats are referred to in the female gender. It is not necessarily the name, but how the ship is looked to by its crew. This started because ships used so much paint and power(gunpowder). Also, a ship is a captains "mistress," but not his wife.

In Russia ships are referred to as "him." So if a Brit sells a Russian a ship, a gender change occurs.

Ships have been named after men for a long time. In the US Navy, destroyers have been named after naval heroes, minesweepers after Indian tribes, cruisers after cities, battleships after states, aircraft carriers after battles, but now the carriers are named after men (so far), and submarines after states and cities.

Inland tow boats can be named after people known by the owners. In fact I know 2 people who have towboats named after them. Mary Ellen Jones, whom I went to school with, and Dr. Edmund Welch, a university president, live in my hometown, and have their names on the sides of boats pushing barges around.

If you want to look at a website with a lot of ships, go to the URL below. It is an enormous site, and you may find it interesting.

Regards,

Dan

Answer 2

Actually... there is a "correct" answer to this question. Though some (even myself) can find humor in the question... the actual answer is:

Historically, ships names were in retrospect to their owners...

Ships with names of females were owned by men (usually Kings)... Ships owned by Queens usually carried the name of her King... or had a more nationalistic name...

Ships owned by their Captains (all male, back then) were considered the Captain's Mistress. Wives knew it, everyone knew it.  The better he cared for her, the better she took care of him.  Of course, you can name your boat anything you want... but to give it a name in respect to the female gender - the boat must meet all the paragon examples of understanding why boats have historically been referred to in the female gender:  Your vessel must be classy - but not flashy.  She must be a head-turner; yet extremely loyal, reliably, and very forgiving of her Captain.  And, just when the Captain is feeling he is in total command... she must immediately do something that scares the living daylights out of him - and prove it is "she" that actually controls his world - she can give him comfort, or make him miserable... she can let him go where he wants, when he wants... or she take over and go where she wants - when she wants, or she can even just stop him in his tracks.  

Now, as for the "boy" names... mostly those vessels are owned by females. Example: John Paul Jones' captained the famous ship "the Bonhomme Richard" (Brave Richard) but the ship was actually owned by the Queen of France and named accordingly (at the suggestion of Ben Franklin) after King Richard - the Lion Hearted.

Today... the proper naming has given way to owner's ego's... and personally, I think it is just plain fun, and often just plain funny... I get a real kick reading the boat names as we pass on the river...

Answer 3

The same reason hurricanes were always named after girls - now that they are named after both girls and boys, why don't we have any "HIMacanes?"

When referring to boy toys - "She's a beauty!" just seems to be the phrase that comes to mind.