An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Ducht

by Friedrich Kluge

Ducht, f., Duchtbank, and Duft, ‘rowing seat, thwart;’ the form with f is HG., that with ch LG.; OHG. dofta, f., OIc. þopta, f., ‘thwart’; OHG. gidofto, prop. ‘comrade on the thwart,’ AS. geþofta, ‘comrade.’ One of the prim-Teut. naval terms developed during the migrations of the Teutons; see Ruder, Segel, Mast, Schiff, &c. That the LG. form found its way into HG. is not remarkable after what has been said under Bord, Büse, and Boot. The OTeut. word for ‘thwart’ (Goth. *þuftó, f.), belongs probably to a root tup, ‘to squat down'; comp. Lith. tupeti, ‘to squat,’ tupti, ‘to squat down.’