Hello Cats

The word catamaran is derived from the Tamil word kaumaram (), literally "tied wood" (from kau "to tie"
and maram "wood, tree").[2] [3] [4] A "kattumaram", a geometry-stabilized rowboat used by the Tamil people, shares omponent
part-names with the proa, a multihull sailboat used by the !eani people. Although the original "kattumaram" inluded a
monohull raft, the modern word catamaran e"lusively means a twin-hulled vessel.
#n the $nited %tates, there are three terms that desribe the main omponents of atamarans and trimarans, namely& 'vaka(,
'aka(, and 'ama(,)*+ terms derived from the,alay and ,ironesian language group terms for parts of the outrigger anoe. These
terms, whih re-ets only Amerian usage, are unknown in the $., where simple /nglish words are used instead.
0aka 1 the anoe or main hull)2+
Aka 1 the framework member that onnets the vaka (hull) to the ama (outrigger, or '-oat())2+
Ama 1 the outrigger, onneted to the vaka by an aka)2+
#n 3awaiian, the main di4erene is the main hull or anoe is a wa'a pronouned like va ah. There is no plural in 3awaiian and so a
double anoe, or two anoes 5oined together by aka is a wa'a wa'a. An area in lower 6una is alled wa'a wa'a. A omprehensive list
of 3awaiian words for a boat is published by the 6olynesian 0oyaging %oiety.)7+
8or a raft with more than two hulls, a pratie developed in whih "cata-" is replaed with the 9reek numerial pre:" for the
number of hulls (e.g. trimaran, pentamaran).