Names of Compass Points
In some languages, points of the compass bear names etymologically derived from words for sunrise and sunset. The English words "orient" and "occident", meaning "east" and "west", respectively, are descended from Latin words meaning "sunrise" and "sunset". The word "levant", related e.g. to French "(se) lever" meaning "lift" or "rise" (and also to English "elevate"), is also used to describe the east. In Polish, the word for east wschód (vskhud), is derived from the morpheme "ws" - meaning "up", and "chód" - signifying "move" (from the verb chodzić - meaning "walk, move"), due to the act of the sun coming up from behind the horizon. The Polish word for west, zachód (zakhud), is similar but with the word "za" at the start, meaning "behind", from the act of the sun going behind the horizon. In Russian, the word for west, запад (zapad), is derived from the words за - meaning "behind", and пад - signifying "fall" (from the verb падать - padat'), due to the act of the sun falling behind the horizon.
Read more about this topic: Sunset
Famous quotes containing the words names of, names, compass and/or points:
“Ideas about life organize perception; names of emotions organize sensations; rules of syntax organize thought. But pain comes on its own.”
—Mason Cooley (b. 1927)
“Far from being antecedent principles that animate the process, law, language, truth are but abstract names for its results.”
—William James (1842–1910)
“Prithee don’t screw your wit beyond the compass of good manners.”
—Colley Cibber (1671–1757)
“Wonderful “Force of Public Opinion!” We must act and walk in all points as it prescribes; follow the traffic it bids us, realise the sum of money, the degree of “influence” it expects of us, or we shall be lightly esteemed; certain mouthfuls of articulate wind will be blown at us, and this what mortal courage can front?”
—Thomas Carlyle (1795–1881)