Jolly Roger
The black pirate flag with skull & crossed bones. The earliest pirates—French filibustiers—simply hoisted a red flag to announce their piratical intentions. It’s not hard to imagine one of the crew darkly describing the flag as “un joli rouge”—a pretty red.
Mark your calendar—September 19th is Talk Like A Pirate Day!
Update: My friend Melanie pointed out that ‘drapeau‘ (flag) is masculine, so I should have spelt ‘joli’, not ‘jolie’. Since corrected!
Thanks for the history (and French) lesson, and i love the ear bones!