Bow (position)

In rowing, the bow (or bow woman or bowman or bowperson) is the rower seated closest to the bow of the boat, which is the forward part of the boat.

In coxless boats, bow is usually the person who keeps an eye on the water behind themselves to avoid accidents.

The rower at the opposite end of the boat is referred to as stroke.

The usage derives from the tradition of having the bow rower's oar be on the starboard or right side of the boat.

[1] In Cornish pilot gigs, the bow rower's oar is on the port left side and therefore bow side refers to the port side of the boat.

In this picture of a coxless pair , the rower on the left of the photo and closest to the bow of the boat is the "bow" rower and is rowing "bowside" or "starboard"