Lõuka (Lõugas)

1) Various meanings revolving around stoves and fireplaces: essentially, the opening and/or part of the hearthstone protruding in front. In Viljandi dialect: the space in front of an oven opening. Its mouth-related cognates – lõug (chin, jaws, ‘mug’, French gueule) and lõugas (little bay, bight or creek) – strengthen the ‘opening to an oven’ interpretation and, by metonymy, a fireplace, inglenook or stone ledge in front of the oven used as seat. Part of a fire, fire-making and fireplace group, see also Sädeme. There is also an erratic boulder called Lõuka kivi a couple of meters from the road at ///lost.dashes.dawn and the question is: which came first? Probably (certainly) the stone. The street naming proceeded essentially NNW with Lõuka in 1958 and Tulekivi in 1959. How the boulder got its name I do not know; 2) small bay or bight, see Pärnulõuka; 3) common gull or sea mew, Larus canus, of multiple appelations: kalakajakas (see Kalamehe and Kajaka), räimekull (Räime and Kulli, although the latter is going a bit too far), kudukajakas (Wut?! See Kudu), jääkajakas (ice gull), tuulekajakas (Tuule), and many, many more... For other erratic-themed locations, see Lükati.