Sailor

A sailor, seaman, mariner, or seafarer is a person who navigates waterborne vessels or assists as a crewmember in their operation and maintenance. The term bluejacket may be used for British or US Navy enlisted sailors, the latter especially when deployed ashore as infantry.The Bluejacket's Manual is the basic handbook for United States Navy personnel. 700,000 of the world's mariners come from the Philippines, being the world's largest origin of seafarers.

Etymologically, the name "sailor" preserves the memory of the time when ships were commonly powered by sails, but it applies to the personnel of all vessels, whatever their mode of propulsion, and includes military (naval) and security (coast guard) maritime personnel and members of the merchant marine, as well as recreational sailors. The term "seaman" is frequently used in the particular sense of a sailor who is not an officer.

Professional mariners

Seafarers hold a variety of professions and ranks, each of which carries unique responsibilities which are integral to the successful operation of an ocean-going vessel. A ship's crew can generally be divided into four main categories: the deck department, the engineering department, the steward's department, and others.

Seafarers (ethnic groups)

Seafarers are the ethnic groups living by the sea in Southeast Asia, and also other sea-living ethnic groups in the world and throughout history.

In Southeast Asia, this ethnic group name refers to a subset of people in a large distribution area, reaching from the islands of Indonesia to Burma. These groups are sometimes known as Sea Gypsies.

East Asia

In the South China Sea area, the ethnic group name is called as Orang Laut, which literally means "the sea people" in Malay. These Malay peoples of Southeast Asia trace their forbears to Yunnan (now a province of China) some 5000–10000 years ago. They were seafarers that migrated along rivers such as Mekong and Irrawady to the Andaman Sea, South China Sea and various locations in the Malay archipelago. In the 15th century, large numbers of Malay Seafarers converted to Islam.

Along the west coast of Thailand and Burma, the ethnic group is referred as the Moken. Their knowledge of the sea enables them to live off its organisms by using simple tools such as nets and spears to forage for food. What is not consumed is dried atop their boats, then used for trade at local markets for other necessities. During the monsoon season, they build additional boats while occupying temporary huts. Many of the Burmese Moken are still nomadic people who roam the sea most of their lives in small hand-crafted wooden boats called Kabang, which serve not just as transportation, but also as kitchen, bedroom, living area. Much of their traditional life, built on the premise of life as outsiders, is under threat and appears to be diminishing. The Sea Gypsies are a minority group that number only a few tens of thousands in Andaman Sea and Thailand. They maintain a nomadic sea-based culture and live almost entirely on boats and practice shamanic rites.