<P> The stern is the back or aft-most part of a ship or boat, technically defined as the area built up over the sternpost, extending upwards from the counter rail to the taffrail . The stern lies opposite of the bow, the foremost part of a ship . Originally, the term only referred to the aft port section of the ship, but eventually came to refer to the entire back of a vessel . The stern end of a ship is indicated with a white navigation light at night . </P> <P> Sterns on European and American wooden sailing ships began with two principal forms: the square or transom stern and the elliptical, fantail, or merchant stern, and were developed in that order . The hull sections of a sailing ship located before the stern were composed of a series of U-shaped rib - like frames set in a sloped or "cant" arrangement, with the last frame before the stern being called the fashion timber (s) or fashion piece (s), so called for "fashioning" the after part of the ship . This frame is designed to support the various beams that make up the stern . </P>

Where is the stern of a boat located