っゑーく・うぇーく : qweeku · 'weeku | define meaning

Cognate to Kagoshima (Takarajima) いやこ iyako; Kikai よー yoo; Amami and Okinoerabu っよー qyoo; Amami いご igo, よほ yoho; Amami (Yuwan) ゆー yuu; Tokunoshima (Asama) いやこ iyako; Yoron やふ yahu; Kunigami (Uka) ぐぇーく gweeku; Kunigami (Nakijin) えーくー eekuu; Okinawan (Kumejima) えーく eeku and いぇーく qyeeku; Okinawan (Shuri, Kumejima, Ogimi) っゑーく qweeku; Okinawan (Shuri) えーく eeku; Okinawan (Itoman) ゑーく weeku; Miyako (Hirara, Tarama, Nakachi, Nagahama) っざく zzaku / ɿzaku; Miyako (Ōgami) うあく ɯaku; Yaeyama いやぐ iyagu; Yaeyama (Hatoma) やく yaku; Yaeyama (Taketomi) よー yoo; Yonaguni だぐ dagu and だく゚ danngu "oar, paddle". Attested as a classifier for rowing strokes in Yaeyama (Hatoma).

Attested in the Okinawan language dictionary (沖縄語典, 1896), by Masayo Nakamoto, under the spelling うえーく ueeku "oar, paddle". Attested under the spelling wwēku "oar" in the 1895 Essay in Aid of a Grammmar and Dictionary of the Luchuan Language, by Basil Hall Chamberlain. Attested under the spelling wayacoo (wayaku or weaku) "oar" in the 1818 Vocabulary of the language spoken at the Great Loo-Choo island in the Japan Sea, by Herbert John Clifford. Reconstructed as *iyako, *iwako and *(U)yako in different sources.

Often observed in a compound beginning with とぅむ【艫】 tumu "stern". For example, Yaeyama (Hatoma) とぅむやく tumuyaku "stern oar, stern oarsman, coxswain". Compare the Japanese terms ともがい【艫櫂】 tomogai and ともろ【艫櫓・艫艪】 tomoro, both used to refer to the oar or oarsman located at the stern of a boat or ship. Also compare わきろ【脇櫓・脇艪】 wakiro and わいかじ【脇楫・脇舵】 waikaji, both used to refer to the oars or oarsmen located on the side of a boat or ship and sometimes at the stern.