What are the Seven Seas? Sounds like a rather simple question to answer, but like most things in life it’s not. The phrase, “sail the seven seas” is an expression referring to traveling the oceans of the world. For some reason the number seven has a more than 4,000 year cross-cultural connection to the number of seas.
A sea is generally defined as a body of salt water that’s larger than a lake. Of course there are exceptions, the Great Salt Lake in Utah and the freshwater Sea of Galilee in Israel come to mind. My inexact count of seas quickly surpasses 70 and that’s without counting gulfs, large bays, channels and straits. So where did ‘the seven seas’ come from?
As with many things blame Mesopotamian astronomers. That’s right the same ancient mathematicians who’s numbering system (based on 60) gifted us with 60 seconds, 60 minutes, and 360 degrees in a circle were also fascinated with the number 7. They were the first to record the movements of the seven heavenly bodies visible with the unaided eye – Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, & Saturn. They formed a connection between the planets and the number of seas.
Why? My personal theory is that it’s because in the Babylonian sexagesimal numbering system seven is the first number with an infinitely repeating reciprocal (similar to three in our decimal system). Okay, that’s a nerdy way of saying I don’t really have a clue why it’s been so persistent, but it has.
As a reward for getting this far, here’s a definitive map featuring the seven seas.
Common medieval European list
- Adriatic Sea
- Arabian Sea
- Black Sea
- Caspian Sea
- Mediterranean Sea
- Persian Gulf
- Red Sea
Lest you think this list has been resolved in the modern era there’s still some ambiguity. The most common list splits the Atlantic and Pacific oceans into north and south ‘seas’ and adds the Arctic, Indian, and Southern to reach seven. An alternative eliminates the north/south distinction as well as the Southern Ocean. It replaces them with the Mediterranean Sea, Caribbean Sea, and the Gulf of Mexico.
In August 2014 Lewis Pugh, an ultra-long distance swimmer set out to swim the seven seas. Using a slightly different list, he undertook swims of at least 10 Km (totaling 200 Km) in seven different seas. Here’s a link to an article and bonus map.
As always thanks for reading.
Armen
Note to pay the bills: While the Warders series doesn’t feature seven seas, several of the stories include epic voyages, nautical battles, and even a whitewater river scene. If that intrigues you and you’re interested in a James Bond-like thriller in a fantasy setting, check out a summary of the series here or find links to purchase books here.
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Hey, Armen. Any idea if Mr. Pugh has finished? According to the linked article he should have finished his final swim on Aug. 29th. I think the Sharks should work on a Great Lakes tour.
Amy, I believe he completed his swim last August. As for the Great Lakes tour, be careful what you mention around Coach Christine – she just might do it.