Sun is over the yardarm

Sun is over the yard arm is a British expression dating from the late 19th century that means it is time for the first alcoholic drink of the day. The yardarms were the horizontal spars from which sails were hung. For the sun to be over or above the yardarm it would depend which particular yardarm. For example, would it be the topmost or one lower down? It would also depend very much on the type of sailing vessel. In the history of the Royal Navy, 11 a.m. was always acknowledged as the ‘sun being over the yardarm’ because this was the time of the first rum ration. Towards the end of the 19th century, when the expression was adopted by the general British public, whether the time for the first drink of the day was 11 a.m. or some other time did not really matter because it was and still is, purely a matter of subjective preference.