Definition

1. Noun:
   • Goods or wreckage on the sea bed that is attached to a buoy so that it can be recovered: "Lagan" refers to cargo or wreckage that has sunk to the bottom of the sea but is marked with a buoy or float to indicate ownership and facilitate future recovery.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • The ship's cargo became lagan when it sank, but the crew attached buoys to the most valuable crates.
  • Maritime law distinguishes between lagan, which is marked, and other types of wreckage.

Advanced Usage

• Legal Context: In admiralty and maritime law, "lagan" is a specific legal category for sunken property that has been intentionally marked to claim ownership, differentiating it from unmarked "derelict" or "jetsam."
  • The court had to determine if the sunken artifacts were lagan or belonged to the state as unclaimed property.

Variants and Related Words

• Ligan: An alternate, less common spelling of "lagan."
• Flotsam: Floating wreckage or cargo.
• Jetsam: Goods thrown overboard (jettisoned) from a ship, especially to lighten it.
• Derelict: Abandoned property, especially a ship, at sea.

Synonyms

• Marked wreckage: Sunken goods attached to a buoy.
• Buoyed cargo: Goods on the seabed marked for recovery.

Related Phrases

• "Goods sunk and buoyed": A descriptive phrase synonymous with "lagan."
  • The salvagers searched for goods sunk and buoyed after the storm.

Related Idioms

Noun

1. goods (or wreckage) on the sea bed that is attached to a buoy so that it can be recovered