cardinal direction
Primary compass bearing
A cardinal direction is one of the four principal compass points: north, south, east, and west.
These are distinguished from intermediate directions like northeast or southwest.
The term comes from the Latin word for hinge—these are the directions on which all others pivot.
Which cardinal direction does your house face?
Device showing cardinal directions
- bearingPosture or orientation
- azimuthHorizontal directional angle
- headingDirectional course traveled
- orientationPosition relative to surroundings
wayfinding · compass rose · magnetic declination · true bearing · course · GPS · sextant · astrolabe
Main compass orientations
- medicine wheelCeremonial stone circle arrangement
- feng shuiChinese placement philosophy
- quartersAssigned living accommodations
- elementalBasic, of natural forces
winds · guardians · watchtowers · cosmology · mandala · sacred geometry · axis mundi · four corners
Of extreme northern cold
- polarOf extreme latitudes
- borealOf northern regions
- tundraFrigid treeless biome
- aurora borealisHigh-latitude luminous sky phenomenon
Nordic · Scandinavia · Siberia · Alaska · Yukon · compass rose · true north · magnetic north
Western regions collectively
- occidentalOf the West
- sunsetDay yielding to darkness
- westwardToward the sunset
- westerlyFrom the sunset direction
westbound · Pacific · Atlantic · compass rose · due west · frontier · Old West · Wild West
Align to surroundings
eastbound · Levant · Far East · Near East · Middle East · Asia · Pacific Rim · compass rose
Of southern direction
- australOf the south
- southwardToward the equator's direction
- southerlyFrom the south
- southboundHeading toward the pole below
Patagonia · Cape Horn · Tasmania · downstream · downward · compass rose · southern hemisphere · southernmost
compass
Device showing cardinal directions
orientation · wayfinding · compass rose · magnetic declination · true bearing · course · GPS · sextant · astrolabe · dead reckoning
four directions
Main compass orientations
- medicine wheelCeremonial stone circle arrangement
- feng shuiChinese placement philosophy
- quartersAssigned living accommodations
elemental · winds · guardians · watchtowers · cosmology · mandala · sacred geometry · axis mundi · four corners · intercardinal
arctic
Of extreme northern cold
aurora borealis · Nordic · Scandinavia · Siberia · Alaska · Yukon · compass rose · true north · magnetic north · northward
occident
Western regions collectively
- occidentalOf the West
- sunsetDay yielding to darkness
- westwardToward the sunset
westerly · westbound · Pacific · Atlantic · compass rose · due west · frontier · Old West · Wild West · setting sun
orient
Align to surroundings
easterly · eastbound · Levant · Far East · Near East · Middle East · Asia · Pacific Rim · compass rose · due east
meridional
Of southern direction
southbound · Patagonia · Cape Horn · Tasmania · downstream · downward · compass rose · southern hemisphere · southernmost · due south
- directionsnorth, south, east, west, left
- navigation termsnautical charts, GPS, north, road signs, maps
- cardinalsredbird, one, two, three, four
- addressesstreet address, mailing address, home address, postal code, zip code
- Earth Featurescontinent, ocean, mountain, volcano, island
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