International Talk Like a Pirate Day (ITLAPD) is a parodic holiday created in 1995 by John Baur (Ol' Chumbucket) and Tim Laugel (Cap'n Slappy), of Albany, Oregon,^[1]U.S., who proclaimed September 19 each year as the day when everyone in the world should talk like a pirate.^[1] For example, an observer of this holiday would greet friends not with "Hello," but with "Ahoy, matey!" The holiday, and its observance, springs from a romanticized view of the Golden Age of Piracy. The holiday is a major observance in the parody religion of the Flying Spaghetti Monster.

According to Laugel, the day is the only holiday to come into being as a result of a sports injury. He has stated that during a racquetball game between Laugel and Baur, one of them reacted to the pain with an outburst of "Aaarrr!", and the idea was born. That game took place on June 6, 1995, but out of respect for the observance of D-Day, they chose Laugel' ex-wife's birthday, as it would be easy for him to remember.^[1][2]

(... from Wikipedia on 2010-02-07 00:56:43 )