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Being of long-ago Irish extraction, your Managing Editor was tickled pink to discover that old sailors used to refer to a flat calm, no wind blowing whatsoever, as an 'Irish Hurricane'!
Do you know any terms in modern parlance whose roots are firmly planted in nautical history?
Can you explain  "a copper-bottomed investment" or " three sheets to the wind "? 
We'll start you off with three that we know about and look forward to finding out what others mean.  "Not enough room to swing a cat ", for example, or how about "swinging the lead"?
How many animal names are used to describe things aboard? Can you name any?
We'll print a selection of answers on this page if you care to give us any...

"COPPER-BOTTOMED"

The term "copper-bottomed", commonly used to describe a financial investment as fail-safe was derived from the coppering of ships' bottoms to avoid the ravages of wood-destroying parasites such as the  Gribble worm and the infamous Toredo worm, 'Jaws' of the marine parasite world. The  British Royal Navy were first to develop the concept of sheathing the wood with copper, in the second quarter of the eighteenth century. It was successful in preventing worm attack but the galvanic action of the copper upon the iron bolts used in the construction of those times, caused havoc. The French and Italian navies tried utilising lead but this was impracticable because, apart from the tremendous added weight, the soft metal was too easily torn away by the sea. 
The British switched from iron bolts to copper fastenings and thus solved their electrolytic problem. The rest of the world's navies soon adopted the idea. Thin sheets of rolled copper were nailed to the underside of the hull after the application of a layer of pitch, or tar, to the wood.

"SHIVER MY TIMBERS"

"Shiver my timbers", an expression of disbelief or surprise, such as might be uttered when a ship strikes a rock, or shoals, so hard that the vibration shakes the entire ship.
Actually, this one may be a bit of a red herring, since it is probable that it was only ever been uttered by the captains and crew of fictitious ships in novels. 

"THREE SHEETS TO THE WIND"

"Three sheets to the wind" used to describe drunken behaviour or unsteadiness of movement, refers to the probability that, even provided with three sheets, or ropes, with which to control the sails, instead of the usual single sheet, the person would still be incapable of steering a steady course.