What's the Difference Between Pirates, Privateers and Buccaneers?

Travelling by sea instead of by air or by land is the choice for some of the adventurous travellers. You will be able to experience the serenity and depth of the ocean. You will be able to catch a rare glimpse at the sea creatures that occasionally goes up to the surface before diving back into the deep blue waters. You will be able to see the land, islands, mountains and many other bodies of land in a way you would not be able to when you travel via a car or a plane. Despite all these and other benefits of travelling by sea, you will also be exposed to its dangers. One of these are criminal acts of violence and robbery committed by pirates.

Pirates share a common meaning with Privateer and Buccaneer which is why there's a tendency that these terms get confused most of the time. 'Pirates' is a generic term as a person who broke the law through various illegal acts at sea such as performing slavery, robbing and attacking ports or ships, or simply escaping authorities by travelling the sea.

Privateer, like the Pirate, also raid ships and ports but they operate legally since they have been given permission by their government - usually at times of war and mostly to attack ships that belong to the enemy or competitors. This means Privateers are not breaking any laws, not in their country at least.

Buccaneer is perhaps the most specific term among the 3. During the 16^th century, the only nation that colonized the Caribbean was Spain. Soon, other countries like England, Netherlands and France started to sail and invade the Caribbean as well. This did not sit well with the Spaniards so they forbid other nations from settling in their ports. Despite this, there were Caribbean outcasts called 'boucaniers' who traded with the non-Spaniards for meat. In French, the parallel bars where meat is grilled is called 'boucane' and 'being associated with lesser beings' is 'boucaner' which are possible origins to why the outcasts were called 'boucaniers.' Later on, the locals were employed as ship crew because they prove themselves to be expert marksmen and navigators. The term was then associated with any privateer or pirate in general whether they be Caribbean locals or not.