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{{refimprove|date = February 2022}}▼
{{Short description|Act of propelling a boat using oars}}
{{About|oar powered propulsion in general|the sport|Rowing (sport)|other uses}}
[[File:Portland Pudgy safety dinghy, rowing.JPG|thumb|A rowing dinghy in use]]
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'''Rowing''' is the act of propelling a [[human-powered watercraft]] using the sweeping motions of [[oar]]s to displace water and generate [[reaction (physics)|reaction]]al [[propulsion]]. Rowing is functionally similar to [[paddling]], but rowing requires oars to be mechanically attached to the boat, and the rower drives the oar like a [[lever]], exerting [[force]] in the ''same'' direction as the boat's travel; while [[paddle]]s are completely hand-held and have no attachment to the boat, and are driven like a [[cantilever]], exerting force ''opposite'' to the intended direction of the boat.
{{anchor|complex terminology}}In some strict terminologies, using oars for propulsion may be termed either "pulling" or "rowing", with different definitions for each. Where these strict terminologies are used, the definitions are reversed depending on the context. On [[seawater|saltwater]] a "pulling boat" has each person working one oar on one side, alternating port and starboard along the length of the boat; whilst "rowing" means each person operates two oars, one on each side of the boat. On inland waterways, the opposite applies, with "rowing" being where each person in a crew works one oar and "sculling" (especially in [[sport rowing]]) involves each participant using a pair of oars. In a maritime setting "sculling" means [[stern sculling|propelling a boat with a single oar operated over the stern]].<ref name="McKee 1983">{{cite book |last1=McKee |first1=Eric |title=Working Boats of Britain, Their Shape and Purpose |date=1983 |publisher=Conway Maritime Press |location=London |isbn=0-85177-277-3 |edition=1997}}</ref>{{rp|135}}<ref name="Admiralty 1937">{{cite book |title=Admiralty Manual of Seamanship |date=1937 |publisher=HMSO |location=London |edition=1941}}</ref>{{rp|226–227}}
This article focuses on the general types of rowing, such as recreation and transport rather than the sport of [[competitive rowing]] which is a specialized case of [[boat racing]] using strictly regulated equipment and a highly refined technique.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.speedrower.com/index.htm |title=Speed Rower, Competitive Rowing |access-date=2009-02-05 }}</ref>
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== History of rowing ==
[[File:Abraham Willaerts, Galley and men of war.jpeg|thumb|A French [[galley (ship)|galley]] and Dutch [[man-of-war]] off a port]]
===Ancient Egypt===
The beginning of rowing is clouded in history but the use of oars in the way they are used today can be traced back to ancient Egypt. Whether it was invented in Egypt or something learned from Mesopotamia via trade is not known. However, archaeologists have recovered a model of a rowing vessel in a tomb dating back to the 18-19th century BC.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/ahistoryoftheworld/objects/-q-160iURT694-i0Eo5b8Q|title=BBC - A History of the World - Object: Egyptian funerary boat|website=www.bbc.co.uk|access-date=26 March 2018}}</ref> The model they found was of a wide boat with shallow bottom, rather like a [[barge]], which was designed to float on the shallow rivers of [[Mesopotamia]]. Both the [[Euphrates]] and the [[Tigris]] rivers were part of
===Ancient Greece===
During the classical age of oared galleys, the Greeks dominated the Mediterranean while the Athenians dominated the other Greeks. They used thousands of lower-class citizens to serve as rowers in the fleet.<ref>''The Lost Technology of Ancient Greek'',John R. Hale, Publisher: Scientific American, Vol. 274, No. 5 (MAY 1996), pp. 82-85.</ref> In [[Classical Athens]], a leading naval power at the time, rowing was regarded as an honorable profession of which men should possess some practical knowledge.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Sargent |first=Rachel L. |title=The Use of Slaves by the Athenians in Warfare |journal=Classical Philology |volume=22 |number=3 |date=1927 |pages=264–279 |doi=10.1086/360910 |jstor=262754 |s2cid=224798329 }}</ref>
The Classical [[trireme]] used 170 rowers;<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/oxford/culture/2004/02/henley_museum/history_rowing.shtml|title=BBC - Oxford Culture - History of rowing and Henley|website=www.bbc.co.uk|access-date=July 30, 2019}}</ref> later galleys included even larger crews. Trireme oarsmen used leather cushions to slide over their seats, which allowed them to use their leg strength as a modern oarsman does with a sliding seat. Galleys usually had masts and sails, but would lower them at the approach of combat. Greek fleets would even leave their sails and masts on shore (as being unnecessary weight) if possible.<ref>''The Athenian Trireme: The History and Reconstruction of an Ancient Greek Warship.'' J. S. Morrison, J. F. Coates, N. B. Rankov. Publisher: Cambridge University Press; 2 edition (20 Jul 2000), {{ISBN|0-521-56456-5}}, {{ISBN|978-0-521-56456-4}}</ref>
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[[File:Bolt in St Mary's Harbour 02.jpg|thumb|280px|A [[Cornish pilot gig]], a single banked boat]]
Different types of pivot points can be used as a fulcrum for the oar. [[File:Thole pins.png|thumb|Thole pins in a close up from the picture above]]
The traditional terminology, in a strict interpretation, varies between boats operating on salt water and in fresh water. "Rowing" at sea denotes each rower operating a pair of oars, one on each side of the boat. When each person uses a single oar on one side of the boat, that action is termed "pulling". In fresh water terminology, "rowing" is the use of one oar per person, whilst "pulling" denotes each person using two oars.{{r|McKee 1983|p=135}}▼
*Thole pins are wooden pegs that are inserted into holes in the top of the [[gunwale]]. They are often used in pairs, with the oar resting between them. If used singly, the oar bears against the thole pin on the power stroke and is held in place by a leather strop for the return stroke.
*Oar crutches{{snd}}commonly called "rowlocks" (see below for the strict definition) are metal fittings, usually U-shaped, with a pin underneath that fits into a metal socket on the gunwale. The oar sits in the U-shaped portion and the oar crutch pivots in the socket whilst in use.[[File:Årluckor.JPG|thumb|A rowlock cut into the washstrake]]
*A rowlock or oarlock is, in strict terminology, a U-shaped cut-out in the top-most [[Glossary of nautical terms (M–Z)#strake|strake]] of the boat's hull{{snd}}this cut-out is usually in a wash-strake, a strake that sits above the gunwale. (The term rowlock is often applied to an oar crutch.) A rowlock may be closed when, for instance, a boat is being used under sail. Strictly speaking, this is done with a piece called a shutter, which is habitually mistermed a "poppett".
*An oarport is a hole cut through the side of the hull. The oar has to be passed through this hole when it is needed. A slot may be cut in one part of the hole to allow the blade of the oar to get through (as seen in the [[Gokstad ship]]).<ref name="McGrail 2014a">{{cite book |last1=McGrail |first1=Sean |title=Early ships and seafaring : European water transport |date=2014 |publisher=Pen and Sword Archaeology |location=South Yorkshire, England |isbn=9781781593929}}</ref>{{rp|36}}<ref name="Admiralty 1937"/>{{rp|213–217}}
▲The traditional terminology, in a strict
Traditional boats propelled by oar are fitted with [[thwart]]s - seats that go from one side of the hull to the other, as well as forming part of the hull structure. A boat that is "double banked" has two crew members sitting on each thwart, each pulling an oar on their side of the boat. In a "single banked" boat, there is one person on each thwart pulling one oar. Though there is usually an even number of oars used in single banked boats (alternating port and starboard along the length of the boat) a common exception is the arrangement in many [[whaleboat]]s, where five oars were often used, three on one side and two on the other.{{r|McKee 1983|p=135}}<ref name="Ansel 78">{{cite book |last1=Ansel |first1=Willits Dyer |title=The Whaleboat : a study of design, construction, and use from 1850 to 1970 |date=1978 |publisher=Mystic Seaport Museum |location=[Mystic, Conn.] |isbn=0-913372-39-0}}</ref>{{rp|17}}
===Forward-facing systems===
[[File:Grand Canal - Rialto - Venice Italy Venezia - Creative Commons by gnuckx (4972005871).jpg|thumb|A [[gondola]] in [[Venice]], Italy propelled with the typical ''voga alla veneta'']]
[[File:Bled (8898122854).jpg|thumb|A forward-facing rowing technique used in the Slovenian [[pletna]]]]
''Push rowing'', also called ''back-watering'' if used in a boat not designed for forward motion, uses regular oars with a pushing motion to achieve forward-facing travel, sometimes seated and sometimes standing. This is a convenient method of manoeuvring in a narrow waterway or through a busy harbour
The [[gondola|Venetian rowing]] (''voga alla veneta'') is the traditional technique in [[Venice]], Italy in which the rower stands up, facing forward and resting a single oar in a special oarlock called ''[[fórcola]]''.
The [[pletna]] of [[Slovenia]] is rowed forward in the standing position with two oars.▼
Another system (also called ''sculling'') involves using a single oar extending from the stern of the boat which is moved side to side underwater somewhat like a fish tail, such as the Chinese ''yuloh'', by which quite large boats can be moved.<ref>''The Junks and Sampans of the Yangtze'' G. R. G. Worcester. Publisher: Naval Institute Press; 1971, {{ISBN|0-87021-335-0}}, {{ISBN|978-0-87021-335-9}}</ref>
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The [[Intha people]] of [[Burma]] row forwards using their legs.
The "Rantilla" system of frontrowing oars uses ''inboard mounted oarlocks'' and a reversing transmission to achieve forward motion of the boat with a pulling motion on the oars.
▲The [[pletna]] of [[Slovenia]] is rowed forward in the standing position with two oars.
==Rowing propulsion==
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{{Main|Oars}}
Over time the design, of both the oars and the blades, has significantly changed. Typically, the part of the oars that are inboard of the rowlock have stayed the same length but the outboard part has gotten shorter. The different lengths of the oars affect both the energy that the rower has to put in as well as the performance, in terms of speed of the rowing boat.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Labbé|first1=Romain|last2=Boucher|first2=Jean-Philippe|last3=Clanet|first3=Christophe|last4=Benzaquen|first4=Michael|date=2019-09-01|title=Physics of rowing oars
A short oar makes quick but short strokes possible. A short oar is easier to use in a narrow creek or a crowded anchorage. This is important in a small tender which may be heavily laden with passengers, limiting the swing of the oars. A short, quick stroke prevents the bow being driven under in choppy waters while heavily laden.
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== See also ==
{{div col|colwidth=23em}}
* [[Coastal and
* [[College rowing]]
* [[Ocean rowing]]
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== External links ==
* {{Commons category-inline|Watercraft rowing}}
* {{cite EB1911 |wstitle=Rowing |volume=23 |first=Charles Murray |last=Pitman |pages=783–786 |short=1}}
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