regattas are held in various riverside towns in England—the major event being the Skiff Championships Regatta at Henley. Akin to the skiff is the yoal or yole which is a clinker built boat used for fishing in the Orkney and Shetland Islands. The boat itself is a version of the Norwegian Oselvar which is similar to a skiff in appearance, while the word is cognate with "yawl". The French yole is a leisure craft similar to the Thames Skiff and is translated as "skiff", while the French skiff translates to a single scull. In Dutch and German, "Skiff" also means a single scull, while Czech skif refers to sculling boats in general. Regattas also take place across Northern Ireland with one of the largest being held in Portadown but smaller events take place throughout the year across County Down. Traditional boats—Americas In American usage, the term is used to apply to small sea-going fishing boats. It is referred to historically in literature in Moby-Dick by Herman Melville and The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway. The skiff could be powered by sails as well as oars. One usage of skiff is to refer to a typically small flat-bottomed open boat with a pointed bow and a flat stern originally developed as an inexpensive and easy to build boat for use by inshore fishermen. Originally designed to be powered by rowing, their form has evolved so that they are efficiently powered by outboard motors. The design is still in common use today for both work and pleasure craft. They can be made of wood or other materials. There is a similar style of craft in Central America and Mexico, generally called a panga. Piracy and smuggling The term skiff has been applied to motorized boats of small size and construction used as sea-going vessels for piracy or drug smuggling. Racing sailing boats The skiff with a sail has developed into specific sailing boats bearing the name "skiff". In Sydney, the term was used for a number of racing classes (sizes from 6 ft to 23 ft have existed). These were originally heavily crewed and canvassed boats that were relatively short for the canvas and crew carried and were developed from working boats of the time. This style of boat is still active in the form of Historical 10 foot and 18 foot classes. The skiff classes developed to become