'Safe Haven' Ain't Misbehavin'

Rob Kyff
Tue, 03 Feb 2026 23:00:00 -0800
Lifestyle

"Isn't the expression 'safe haven' redundant?" asks Anthony Cannella of New Britain, Conn. "Isn't a haven by its very nature safe?"

Condemning "safe haven" as a redundancy has long provided a safe haven for beleaguered language commentators. Their standard dictum is that, by definition, a haven provides security and protection, so "safe" isn't needed.

But some of us linguistic pirates are willing to sail OUT of that safe haven into the choppier waters of complexity. A case can be made that "safe haven" isn't redundant.
Updated: Wed Feb 04, 2026

"Isn't the expression 'safe haven' redundant?" asks Anthony Cannella of New Britain, Conn. "Isn't a haven by its very nature safe?"

Condemning "safe haven" as a redundancy has long provided a safe haven for beleaguered language commentators. Their standard dictum is that, by definition, a haven provides security and protection, so "safe" isn't needed.

But some of us linguistic pirates are willing to sail OUT of that safe haven into the choppier waters of complexity. A case can be made that "safe haven" isn't redundant.

Haven" derives from the Germanic "haefno" denoting "a place that holds ships," and the original meaning of "haven" in English was "harbor."

Because harbors are usually safe places (except, of course, if you're a tea chest in Boston in 1773), "haven" came to mean a place of refuge, a sanctuary, or a place offering favorable opportunities and conditions, as in "a haven for writers."

While it's true that a haven is usually safe, sometimes it's not. A wildlife refuge, for instance, might be a haven for birdwatchers, but, if it's filled with alligators, it's an unsafe haven.

The debate over "safe haven" raises a larger issue: Is redundancy always wrong?

The primary purpose of language is clear and effective communication. That's why it's always wise to avoid unnecessary words that glop up a sentence. Of course, we should avoid silly tautologies such as "the reason is because," "basic fundamentals" and "free gift."

But in some situations, redundancy is actually helpful and desirable in clarifying and emphasizing a point. If you want to make sure your trousers stay up, it's best to wear a belt AND suspenders.

Saying, for instance, "The Spanish treasure ships found a safe haven in Barbados" makes it crystal clear that they found security and protection in a way that saying, "The Spanish treasure ships found a haven in Barbados" doesn't. (Perhaps they were soon attacked by pirates lurking there.)

In this case, "safe haven" ain't misbehavin'; it's a useful redundancy, one that clarifies and underscores meaning.

Other oft-denounced redundancies that can actually be useful in certain contexts include "personal friend" (as opposed to a business friend), "final result" (not a preliminary finding), "advance planning" (not last-minute planning), "visible to the eye" (as opposed to a microscope), "new recruit" (not someone recruited a while back).

Sometimes, such double knotting isn't just a necessity. It's an "absolute necessity."