bidarka

American  

[bahy-dahr-kuh] / baɪˈdɑr kə /

Sometimes bidara or baidarka

noun

1. a sealskin boat used by primarily by the Alaskan Aleuts.

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bidarka British  

/ baɪˈdɑːkə /

noun

1. a canoe covered in animal skins, esp sealskin, used by the Inuit of Alaska

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Etymology

Origin of bidarka

First recorded in 1825–35; from Russian baĭdárka, equivalent to baĭdár(a) “kind of river craft” (apparently akin to baĭdák “river craft, barge,” Old Russian baidakŭ, bodakŭ, of obscure origin) + -ka diminutive suffix

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

bidarka

Once or twice he gently turned the prow of the bidarka, using the least possible motion.

From The Young Alaskans by Emerson Hough

Skookie was less particular, but, with the confidence born of long experience, took a running jump as he pushed off the bidarka and scrambled into the rear hatch.

From The Young Alaskans by Emerson Hough

And it's frail looking, frail as an eggshell, yet I would stake a bidarka against a lifeboat in a surf.

From The Rim of the Desert by Ada Woodruff Anderson

Even as his bidarka shot forward with its own momentum, he drew out from the forward hatch this sacred instrument and fitted to it the short harpoon.

From The Young Alaskans by Emerson Hough

A few yards farther he motioned for the headway to be checked, and just as the bidarka stopped he launched his barbed arrow with a savage grunt.

From The Young Alaskans by Emerson Hough

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