High Seas

[mata hati]

Where does the saying "on the high seas" come from? I know what its supposed to mean ( at sea) but "high"?

[Quizmonster]

It probably originated as a naval saying to indicate the open ocean as opposed to inshore waters. Perhaps sailors had in mind something as simple as the height of waves encountered there!

[Clanad]

I suspect Q is correct as to the gist of the phrase, however; a couple of pedantically extraneous observations:
Dictionary Unabridged (with a reference to Q's venerable O.E.D.) has this to say:
noun 1. the sea or ocean beyond the three-mile limit or territorial waters of a country.
2. Usually, high seas. a. the open, unenclosed waters of any sea or ocean; common highway.
b. Law. the area within which transactions are subject to court of admiralty jurisdiction.
Origin: bef. 1100; ME; OE h�ah-sǣ]

Additionally. some quite old legal references differentiate between 'high seas' as opposed to the sea bed. Legally, property rights and ownership could have been granted for the shore line at low tide, (seen here: http://www.mass.gov/czm/shorelinepublicaccess. htm) but no implied ownership of the sea (water) covering the same land at high tide. Since, in many parts of the world, the difference between low tide/high tide boundaries could be a large distance, the generally accepted distance of 3 miles (usually nautical miles) became applicable (since extended to 12 miles or further by most nations) for settling national legal boundaries as well... lending the definition further credence.

[mata hati]

Gosh! Very good explaination, and well sought out Clannad. Thankyou
And thanks to "Q" as well, I did thank you on my other answer but thats not really enough is it!

[VS Prasad]

All the sea which is not the property of a particular country. The sea three miles out belongs to the adjacent coast, and is called mare clausum. High-seas, like high-ways, means for the public use. In both cases the word high means �chief,� �principal.� (Latin, allum, �the main sea;� allus, �high.�)

http://www.bartleby.com/81/8267.html

The open waters of an ocean or a sea beyond the limits of the territorial jurisdiction of a country: "piracy on the high seas."

In maritime law, the waters lying outside the territorial waters of any and all states. In the Middle Ages, a number of maritime states asserted sovereignty over large portions of the high seas. The doctrine that the high seas in time of peace are open to all nations was first proposed by Hugo Grotius (1609), but it did not become an accepted principle of international law until the 19th century. Activities permitted on the high seas include navigation, fishing, the laying of submarine cables and pipelines, and overflight of aircraft.

http://www.answers.com/on%20the%20high%20seas

Origin: bef. 1100; ME; OE h�ah-sǣ

http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=high+ seas&r=66

The open sea; the part of the ocean not in the territorial waters of any particular sovereignty, usually distant three miles or more from the coast line.

http://ultralingua.com/onlinedictionary/index. html?service=ee&text=high+seas

http://en.w