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"Believe me, my young friend. There is nothing, absolutely nothing,
half so worth doing as simply messing around in boats." 

The Wind in the Willows

Dutch Kayaking and Canoeing Vocabulary

1/12/2015

6 Comments

 
[I wrote this post back in January 2015, but I keep it updated each time I learn something new! I will add sailing terms soon!]

While I consider myself a fairly fluent Dutch (/Flemish) speaker, I was surprised at my limited kayaking vocabulary when I first joined the Windhappers kayaking club last September. It's hard to convince someone that you're a competent paddler when they ask you if you know how to do a boogslag (sweep stroke) and you return a blank stare. In the same vein, many of the otherwise-fluent English speakers did not recognize the English terms that I offered up in an effort to reach a mutual understanding. 

So, to shrink this gap in communication for myself and anyone else in the same boot, I put together this list of common kayaking and canoeing terms. A big thanks to Tim, Leon, Sytse, Eric, and Jan of the Windhappers for helping me translate the more challenging words. It's a work in progress. Please contact me if you find an error or have suggested additions. Click Read More to see the list of terms!
You'll notice that most of the Dutch ("Nederlands" in Dutch) terms include a "het" of "de". In Dutch, masculine and feminine words are preceded by "de" while neuter words are preceded by "het". While there is general guidance for knowing when to use de vs. het, even native Dutch speakers forget for less common vocabulary. 

If you're looking for something specific, use CTRL-F to search. If you don't find what you're looking for, comment below and I'll add it!

English-Dutch kayaking and canoeing dictionary
Engels-Nederlands kajakken en kanoën woordenlijst


English (Engels) Nederlands (Dutch)
Environment Het Milieu
water het water
river de rivier
lake het meer
reservoir het reservoir
canal het kanaal/de gracht
beach het strand
coast de kust
tidal flat het wad
island het eiland
peninsula het schiereiland
water surface het wateroppervlak
water level het waterpeil
saltwater het zoutwater
freshwater het zoetwater
Gear ("Things") De Spullen
PFD/life jacket het zwemvest/ reddingsvest
spray skirt/deck het spatzeil
paddle de peddel
paddle shaft de peddel steel
paddle blade peddel blad
Greenland-style Groenlandse-stijl?
Euro-style Europese-stijl?
boat de boot
bow de boeg
stern de achtersteven
hull de romp
back-band (rest) de rugsteun
bulkhead het waterdicht schot
deck het dek
decklines de deklijnen
keel de kiel
cockpit de kuip
coaming de kuiprand
rudder het roer
skeg de scheg
foot peg/brace de voetsteun
hatch het luik
knee/thigh brace de dijbeensteun
bilge pump de lenspomp
paddle float ?
dry bag de droogzak
radio de radio
Skills De Vaardigheden
eskimo rolling eskimoteren
wet exit zwemmen (swimming...)
self-rescue zelfredding
assisted rescue X-redding
forward stroke de voorwardseslag
backpaddle de achterwaardseslag
sweep stroke de boogslag
draw stroke ?
high brace de hogesteun
low brace de lagesteun
edging opkanten
ferry traverseren
sculling ?
surf de branding
surfing brandingvaren
surf kayak brandingkajak
English (Engels) Nederlands (Dutch)
Sea Kayaking Zeevaren
sea kayak de zeekajak
double/tandem kayak de tweepersoons kano
kayak touring toervaren
kayak/canoe tour kanotocht
flatwater het vlakwater
sea/ocean de zee
tide het getij
ebb tide het eb
slack tide ?
flood tide de vloed
current de stroom
wave(s) de golf/golven
swell de deining
seas/chop ?
rip current muistroom
undertow de onderstroom
reef het rif
shoal de ondiepte
standing wave staande golf
Whitewater Kayaking Het Wildwatervaren
whitewater het wildwater
waterfall de waterval
rapid de stroomversnelling
eddy het keerwater
eddy line het keerwaterlijn
upstream stroomopwaarts
downstream stroomafwaarts
float bag de drijfzak
raft(s) het vlot/de vlotten
rodeo boat rodeoboot
tricks trucjes
Kayak Polo Kanopolo
players spelers
ball de bal
field het veld
points punten
competition/game wedstrijd
tournament(s) het toernooi/toernooien
kayak polo boat kanopoloboot
helmet de helm
face mask gezichtsbeschermer/rekje
goal het goal
advanced (players) gevorderden
Canoeing Kanovaren
canoe de kano
grip (paddle) de grip
trim de naad
portage overdragen
Others Anderen
kayak/canoe club kanovereniging or kanoclub
member het lid
explorer de ontdekkingsreiziger
6 Comments
Sophie
1/18/2015 03:03:57

Wow, this must have been so much work to put together.... Are there even translations for all of them? By the way, is 't standing wave "staande golf"?

Reply
Nena
1/18/2015 16:53:44

I don't think so - standing wave is a term for a specific type of wave that doesn't move over time. I don't think you can just translate it directly, and the others in the club weren't sure how to translate it either.

Reply
Sander
2/9/2015 21:27:42

The phenomenon in physics is called a staande golf:
http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Staande_golf
I am not sure if there's a separate term for a standing wave in water.

Reply
sander
2/9/2015 21:29:15

And rip current is muisstroom:
http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muistroom

Reply
Nena link
2/10/2015 19:19:05

Thanks Sander!

Elly
4/28/2015 22:15:52

I think slack tide is dood tij

Reply



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    Welcome!

    This is a blog about exploring the outdoors (mostly by kayak), traveling, trip planning, and coastal engineering. It currently focuses on kayaking in the Netherlands and Belgium, but previous posts cover Upstate New York, California, and much more. See the Complete List of Blog Posts for a history of the site. Looking for something specific? Search the site here.

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