North - Roles of north as prime direction

North is one of the four cardinal directions, specifically the direction that, in Western culture, is treated as the primary direction: north is used (explicitly or implicitly) to define all other directions; the (visual) top edges of maps usually correspond to the northern edge of the territory represented, unless explicitly stated otherwise or landmarks are considered more useful for that territory than specific directions. North - Definitions. North can mean: true north, the direction ...

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• North - Definitions
• North - Etymology
• North - Magnetic north and declination
• North - Roles of north as prime direction
• North - Roles of east and west as inherently subsidiary directions

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The visible rotation of the night sky about the visible celestial pole provides a vivid metaphor of that direction corresponding to up. Thus the choice of the north as corresponding to up in the northern hemisphere, or of south in that role in the southern, is, prior to world-wide communication, anything but an arbitrary one. On the contrary, it is of interest that Chinese culture ever considered south as the proper top end for maps. In Western culture (unless making a point about harmful effects, or the arbitrary nature, of boreocentr ...

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North, North - Definitions, North - Etymology, North - Magnetic north and declination, North - Roles of north as prime direction, North - Roles of east and west as inherently subsidiary directions

Read more here: » North: Encyclopedia II - North - Roles of north as prime direction

It is worth noting that while the choice of north over south as prime direction reflects quite arbitrary historical factors, east and west are not nearly as natural alternatives as first glance might suggest. Their folk definitions are, respectively, "where the sun rises" and "where it sets". Except on the Equator, however, these definitions, taken together, would imply that east and west would not be 180 degrees apart, but instead would differ from that by up to twice the degrees of latitude of the location in question, and they would each move slightly from ...

See also:

North, North - Definitions, North - Etymology, North - Magnetic north and declination, North - Roles of north as prime direction, North - Roles of east and west as inherently subsidiary directions

Read more here: » North: Encyclopedia II - North - Roles of east and west as inherently subsidiary directions