Few people sitting in a modern boardroom picture a wooden slab being balanced on someone’s knees. However, that is more or less where the word for boardroom comes from.
In the past, a board simply referred to a flat piece of wood. Many households did not have tables to dine on in the same way as today. Instead, they utilised a board, which was a plank of wood that would be placed in the eating area and leaned against the wall for the remainder of the day.
The plank of wood that would be used for meals began to take on the other functions of the area. The meals themselves became known as a “board” – so many boarding houses provided room and board to their guests, and why those people were referred to as boarders. Also, the phrase “above board” refers to the idea of having one’s hands visible above the table as a sign of having nothing to hide. To find out more about Meeting Rooms Worcester, contact https://hatherleymanor.com/conference-venues-gloucester/meeting-rooms/meeting-rooms-worcester/
Therefore, when a group of people began to gather around their plank to discuss decisions, the room inherited the name associated with the plank. There was no connection between ships, cargo, and the word for boardroom; only the plank of wood that had been utilised by people to eat and discuss the decisions they made in the area.
