Seven Seas

Seven Seas over Time

The term the Seven Seas will mean different things to different people and you will most often see the Seven Seas term in literature. In medieval European literature the Seven Seas is a term that was referring to Adriatic Sea, the Aegean Sea, the Arabian Sea, the Black Sea, the Caspian Sea, the Indian Ocean, the Irish ea, the Mediterranean Sea, the North Sea, the Persian Gulf, and the Red Sea. When you hear the term the Seven Seas many people have to stop and question which of the seas the Seven Seas includes as the International Hydrographic Organization qualifies 100 different bodies of water as seas. 

Seven Seas History

Many claim that the term the Seven Seas is something that is newer and has origins in Greece and Rome. While Greece and Rome may be where the term the Seven Seas originated, the Seven Seas have been referred to for a long time. The term the Seven Seas has been found in literature since 2300 BC. In fact, the Seven Seas are referred to around this time in Hymn 8 of the Sumerian Enheduanna to the goddess Inanna. 

Seven Seas around the World

 

The term the Seven Seas was also found in a ninth century AD Muslim piece of writing in which the Seven Seas are clearly defined. In this writing the Seven Seas referred to the Persian Gulf, the Gulf of Khambhat, the Bay of Bengal, the Strait of Malacca, the Singapore Strait, the Gulf of Thailand, and the South China Sea. This Arabian version of the Seven Seas is obviously different than was thought in Rome and Greece. 

 

Seven Seas Origin of the Name

In Venice the term the Seven Seas usually just meant that one had sailed through the area lagoons and in Rome the Seven Seas usually meant that one had sailed on seven different bodies of water, and therefore possessed better than average sailing skills. As you can see, the term the Seven Seas means different things in different places, and the Seven Seas has been redefined over time. The term the Seven Seas today usually is found in stories in books, or even stories about the Seven Seas that are passed down from generation to generation. 

 

Seven Seas in Modern Times

 

Today the Seven Seas are still defined, but the Seven Seas are defined differently than they once were. The Seven Seas today are the North Pacific Ocean, the South Pacific Ocean, the North Atlantic Ocean, the South Atlantic Ocean, the Southern Ocean, and the Arctic Ocean, which are not actually Seven Seas, but portions of different the same seas. As you can see, the Seven Seas are different than when the term was first used in the past, and the definition of the Seven Seas may very well change in the future. With maps and true names for things, the Seven Seas are not often referred to in a scientific sense, but rather the Seven Seas are referred to in a dramatic or cumulative sense when referring to the Seven Seas, or the waters of the world.