Why say "North-east" and not "East-north"?

• dibilo

  12 Aug 06, 16:19

  just wondering why when we are addressing a direction, we have to put the North or South in front of West and East. Anyone knows if there is any reasons for it? Or is it just simply something which we standardise to make our life easier?
• shade343

  12 Aug 06, 16:21

  Maybe it was the ancient navigators that coined the term and we just follow.
• ^spidee^

  12 Aug 06, 16:25

  Because it's clockwise?
• sinicker

  12 Aug 06, 16:27

  there is a reason why....
  
  but oh well, i last touched geography 3 yrs ago.
  
  it's as good as asking why it is ice cream, not cream ice.
• hellomotosxq

  12 Aug 06, 16:41

  in chinese . it is east -north ( dong bei ) . not north -east .
• markzz

  12 Aug 06, 17:10

  Originally posted by sinicker:

  there is a reason why....
  
  but oh well, i last touched geography 3 yrs ago.
  
  it's as good as asking why it is ice cream, not cream ice.

  Another example is why coke is called "Coca Cola " and not "Cola Coca"
  
  
• digicharat

  12 Aug 06, 17:24

  because of north pole and south pole?
• RaTtY8l

  12 Aug 06, 17:27

  cos magnet only point to north or south only? jus guessing
• chenc

  12 Aug 06, 18:14

  Its a tradition. Also, it is a standard way through the world. North and South always come before East and West
• LinkageII

  12 Aug 06, 18:21

  Originally posted by chenc:

  Its a tradition. Also, it is a standard way through the world. North and South always come before East and West

  yah.. NSEW mah.. which come first say which first lor
• NT2

  12 Aug 06, 23:12

  goreng pisang and pisang goreng sounds similar but the meaning is different.
  
  goreng pisang means u fry the banana
  
  pisang goreng means fried banana
• popmynutsy

  12 Aug 06, 23:29

  if its called east-north. u will be asking why its east-north and not north-east.
• 798

  12 Aug 06, 23:33

  english like to say north south east west (bei nan dong xi);
  but chinese like to use dong nan xi bei (east south west north).
  
  i think it's more like tongue twisting.
• photo_seeker

  12 Aug 06, 23:35

  Originally posted by shade343:

  Maybe it was the ancient navigators that coined the term and we just follow.

  More or less, you're there.
• ^tamago^

  13 Aug 06, 00:08

  trying boxing the compass.
• ^tamago^

  13 Aug 06, 00:10

  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boxing_the_compass
  
  north, south, east, west are known as cardinal directions.
  north-east, north-west, south-west and south-east are known as ordinal or intermediate directions.
• 798

  13 Aug 06, 02:12

  i wonder why chinese define East as starting point?
  
  maybe to them, sun is risen from the east so it is 1st word.
• ^tamago^

  13 Aug 06, 02:16

  Originally posted by 798:

  i wonder why chinese define East as starting point?
  
  maybe to them, sun is risen from the east so it is 1st word.

  think so too.
  
  look at japan. land of the rising sun.
• ndmmxiaomayi

  13 Aug 06, 11:15

  Because the compass always point North.
• lifeisgood9989

  13 Aug 06, 11:34

  or maybe its just that north always comes b4 east?