Proto-Eskimo: *tuvra- ~ *tǝvra-
Meaning: ridgepole
Russian meaning: распорка палатки, яранги
Comments: This stem has no connection to *tuɣǝt- to span, to stretch skin over frame'. First, the root's meaning is 'beam' or 'log'; second, it is a cultural borrowing from PCh *tefri # 'frame of yaranga, one from three ridgepoles': "Три опорных столба, связанные верхушками между собой, остова яранги являются предметом религиозного поклонения" (Three base ridgepoles of the yaranga frame, bound together by the tops, are an object of religious worship).
Comparative Eskimo Dictionary: 347
