During the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, as the English began to sail their trading ships more often, these terms started to become popular. It was a way for navigators to give each other instructions while sailing the great seas. As England colonized countries such as the current United States and India, sailors in the countries all over the globe that the English colonized began to use these terms, too. As a result, it became a global way of referring to sides of the ship. Since this time, maritime terms have become regularized and made uniform by international bodies. Because port and starboard were already being used by so many, they became the official terms used worldwide.