north 
north (north), . and a. [< ME. north, norths, 
n., north (ace. north as adv.), < AS. north, adv., 
orig. the ace. or dat. (locative) of the noun, 
used adverbially (never otherwise as a noun, 
and never as an adj., except in compar. tiorthra, 
northern!, superl. northmest, the form north, 
as an adj., given in the dictionaries being sim- 
ply the adv. (north or northun) alone or in 
comp.), to the north, in the north, north; in 
comp. north-, a quasi-adj., as north-da:!, the 
northern region, the north, etc. (> E. north, a.); 
= OFries. north, nord = D. noord = MLG. nort, 
nort, LG. nord = OHG. nord, nort, Gr. nord = 
Icel. nordhr = Sw. Dan. nord, north ; as a noun, 
in other than adverbial uses, developed from 
the older adverbial uses (cf. F. nord = Sp. Pg. 
It. norte, from the E.): (1) AS. north = OS. 
north = OFries. north, nord = D. noord = Sw. 
norr = Dan. nord, adv., to the north, in the 
north, north ; (2) AS. northan = MLG. norden 
== OHG. nordana, nordane, MHG. norden = 
Icel. nordhan= Sw. nordan, adv., prop, 'from 
the north,' but in MLG. and MHG. also ' in the 
north, north'; hence the noun, D. noorden = 
MLG. norden, norden = OHG. nordan, MHG. 
G. norden = Dan. norden, the north (cf. also 
northerly, northern, etc.) ; root unknown. The 
Gr. veprepof, below, and the Umbrian nertro, to 
the left, are phonetically near to the Teut. 
word, but no proof of connection exists.] I. n. 
1. That one of the cardinal points which is on 
the right hand when one faces in the direction 
of the setting sun (west) ; that intersection of 
the horizon with the meridian which is on the 
right hand when one is in this position. 
Send danger from the east unto the west. 
So honour cross it from the north to south. 
Shak., 1 Hen. IV., i. 3. 196. 
2. A region, tract, or country, or a part of such, 
lying toward the north pole from some other 
region or point of reckoning. 
More uneven and unwelcome news 
Came from the north. Shak., 1 Hen. IV., L 1. 61. 
The false North displays 
Her broken league to imp their serpent wings. 
Milton, Sonnets, x. 
Specifically 3. leap.'] With the definite arti- 
cle : In U. S. hist, and politics, those States and 
Territories which lie north of Maryland, the 
Ohio river, and Missouri. 
The Northern man who set up his family-altar at the 
South stood, by natural and almost necessary synecdoche, 
for the North. Tourgie, Fool's Errand, xxvii. 
4. The north wind. 
No, I will speak as liberal as the north. 
Shak., Othello, v. 2. 220. 
The stream is fleet the north breathes steadily 
Beneath the stars. Shelley, Revolt of Islam, viii. 1. 
5. Eccles., the side of a church that is on the left 
hand of one who faces the altar or high altar. 
See east, 1 Magnetic north. See magnetic. 
II. a. 1. Being in the north ; northern. 
Tho that selde hauenthe sonne and sitten in the nortA-half. 
Fieri Plowman (C), xix. 66. 
If her breath were as terrible as her terminations, there 
were no living near her ; she would infect to the north 
star. Shak., Much Ado, ii. 1. 268. 
2. Eccles. , situated at or near that side of a 
church which is to the left of one facing the altar 
or high altar. Abbreviated N. North dial. See 
dial. North end of an altar, the end of an altar at the 
left hand of the priest as he stands facing the middle of the 
altar from the front North following, in outran., in or 
toward that quadrant of the heavens situated between the 
north and east points. North pole, star, wind. See the 
nouns. North preceding, in or toward the quadrant be- 
tween the north and west points. North side Of an 
altar, that part of the front or western side of an altar 
which intervenes between the middle and the north end ; 
the gospel side. North water, among whalers, the space 
of open sea left by the winter pack of ice moving south- 
ward. 
north (north), adv. [< ME. north, nort, < AS. 
north, adv.: see north, .] To the north; in 
the north. 
And west, nort, & south, 
Euery man, bothe fremyd & kouth, 
Xul [shall] comyn with-outyn ly. 
Political Poems, etc. (ed. Furnivall), p. 249. 
Our army is dispersed already : 
Like youthful steers unyoked, they take their courses 
East, wes^ north, south. Shak., 2 Hen. IV., iv. 2. 104. 
north (north), v. i. [< north, w.and adv.'] Naut., 
to move or veer toward the north. [Rare.J 
North-Carolinian (n6rth'kar-9-lin'i-an), a. and 
n. [< North Carolina (see def.) + -Ian.'] I. a. 
Of or pertaining to the State of North Carolina, 
one of the southern United States, lying south 
of Virginia. 
II. . A native or an inhabitant of the State 
of North Carolina. 
4018 
north-cock (north ' kok ) , n . The snow-bunting, 
l'leetroj>liiiitc.i iiiralin. [Local, Scotland.] 
northeast (north'est'), . and a. [< ME. north- 
eat, < AS. northeast-, in comp., northan-edstan, 
from the northeast (= D. noordoost = MLG. 
nortoster = OHG. nordostan, G. nordosten = 
Sw. Dan. nordost, northeast; cf. D. noordooste- 
lijk = G. nordostlich = Sw. Dan. nordostlig. 
adv.), < north, north, + cast, east: see north &na 
east.] I. . That point on the horizon between 
north and east which is equally distant from 
them; N. 45 E., or E. 45 N. 
II. a. Pertaining to the northeast ; proceed- 
ing from or directed toward that point ; north- 
eastern: as, a northeast wind; to hold a north- 
east course. Abbreviated N. E Northeast pas- 
sage, a passage for ships along the northern coast of Eu- 
rope and Asia to the Pacific ocean. The first to make the 
complete voyage by this passage was the Swedish explorer 
Nordenskiold in 1878 - 9, after it had been from time to 
time attempted in vain for upward of three centuries. 
northeast (north'esf). adv. To the northeast. 
northeaster (uorth'es'ter), n. [< northeast + 
-er 1 .] 1. A wind or gale from the northeast. 
Welcome, wild North-easter! 
Shame it is to see 
Odes to every zephyr, 
Ne'er a verse to thee. 
Kingsley, Ode to the North-East Wind. 
2. The silver shilling or sixpence of New Eng- 
land in the reign of Charles I. : so called from 
their having the letters N. E. (meaning ' New 
England,' but assumed to mean 'northeast') 
impressed on one of their faces. 
northeasterly (north'es'ter-li), a. [< north- 
east, after easterly.] Going toward or coming 
from the northeast, or the general direction of 
northeast : as, a northeasterly course ; a north- 
easterly wind. 
northeasterly (north'es'ter-li), adv. [< north- 
easterly, a.] Toward or from the northeast, or 
a general northeast direction. 
northeastern (north'es'tern), a. [(= OHG. 
nordostroni) < northeast, after eastern.] Per- 
taining to or being in the northeast, or in the 
direction of the northeast. 
northeastward (ndrth'est'ward), adv. [< north- 
east + -ward.] Toward the northeast. 
northeastwardly (north'est'ward-li), adv. [< 
northeastward + -ly 2 .] Same as northeastward. 
norther (nor'THer), n. [< north + -erl.~] 1. 
A strong or cold northerly wind. 2. A vio- 
lent cold north wind blowing, mainly in win- 
ter, over Texas and the Gulf of Mexico. A norther 
is always preceded by the passage of a cyclone, of which, 
in fact, it is the rear part. On the east side of a cyclone 
prevail warm, moist, southerly winds, while on the west 
side the winds are northerly. In the winter, when the 
temperature gradient from the Gulf of Mexico northward 
over Texas is very steep, the northerly winds following 
the passage of the center of a cyclone at times blow over 
this region with great fury, producing a very sudden and 
great fall of temperature. Over the Gulf, northers often 
cause wrecks in the Bay of Campeachy, on a lee shore. 
, 
the descending Norther. 
Proc. Amer. Ass. Adv. Sci., XIX. 99. 
This storm may be known as the Blizzard of the North- 
west, the Chinook of the Northern Plateau, the Norther of 
the Southern Slope and Texas, or the Simoon of the Des- 
ert. Jour. Franklin Inst., CXXI. 247. 
northering (nor'THer-ing), a. [< norther + 
-in</ 2 .] Wild; incoherent. Halliwell. [Prov. 
Eng.] 
northerliness (nor'THer-H-nes), n. The state 
of being northerly. 
northerly (nor'THer-li), a. [< north, after eas- 
terly. Cf. D. noordelijk = G. nordUch = Sw. Dan. 
nordlig.'] i. Pertaining to or being in or to- 
ward the north ; northern. 
\s Superstition, the daughter of Barbarism and Igno- 
rance, so amongst those northerly nations, like as in Amer- 
ica, magic was most esteemed. 
Selden, Illustrations of Drayton's Polyolbion, note 7. 
2. Proceeding from the north. 
Well he wist and remembred that he was faine to stay 
till he had a Westerne winde, and somewhat Northerly. 
Hakluyt's Voyages, p. 4. 
northerly (nor'THer-li), adv. [< northerly, a.] 
Toward the north : as, to sail northerly. 
northern (n6r'THern), a. and n. [< ME. nor- 
thern, northren, < AS. northeme (= OHG. nor- 
daroni, nordroni = Icel. norrwnn), northern, < 
north, north. Cf. eastern, western, southern.] 
I. a. 1. Of or pertaining to a region, place, or 
point which is nearer the north than some other 
region, place, or point mentioned or indicated : 
as, the northern States; the northern part of 
Michigan; northern people. Abbreviated^. 
Northumbrian 
Like a streamer of the northern morn, 
Seen where the moving isles of winter shock 
By night, with noises of the northern sea. 
Tennyson, Morte d' Arthur. 
2. Directed or leading toward the north or a 
point near it: as, to steer a northern course. 
3. Proceeding from the north. 
The angry northern wind 
Will blow these sands, like Sibyl's leaves, abroad. 
Shak., Tit. And., iv. 1. 104. 
Great northern diver, falcons, etc. See the nouns. 
Northern crow. Same as hooded crow. See hooded. 
Northern Crown. See Corona Borealis, under corona. 
Northern drab, a moth, Taeiaocampa ojnma. North- 
ern drift. See drift. Northern fur-seal, Cattorhinus 
wrrimis. Northern grape-fern, the grape-fern Botry- 
chium boreale. Northern hare, Lepus variatnlis. 
Northern hemisphere. See hemisphere. Northern 
lights, the aurora borealis. Northern node. Same as 
ascending node (see node, 6). Northern oyster, rustic, 
sea-cow, etc. See the nouns. Northern signs, those 
signs of the zodiac that are on the north side of the equa- 
tor, namely Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, and Virgo. 
Northern staff, a quarter-staff. Northern swift, 
wasp, etc. See the nouns. The Northern Car. See 
carl. 
II. n. A native or an inhabitant of the north, 
of a northern country, or of the northern part 
of a country. Hallam. 
northerner (n6r'THern-er), n. A native of or 
a resident in the north, or in the northern part 
of any country, especially of a country divided 
into two distinct sections, a northern and a 
southern ; specifically, a citizen of the north or 
northern United States. 
I must say, as being myself a northerner, it is least where 
it ought to be largest. Gladstone. 
The condition of "dead drunkness," which few even of 
drinking Northerners enjoy, is to them [Asiatics] delight- 
ful. Contemporary Bee., LIII. 169. 
"In other words, your parents object to an alliance with 
my family because we are of Northern birth," said the 
Fool. " Not exactly ; not so much because you are North- 
erners, as because you are not Southerners." 
Tourgie, Fool's Errand, xliii. 
northernlyt (nor'THern-li), adv. Toward the 
north. 
These [constellations] Northernely are seene. 
Purchas, Pilgrimage, p. 80. 
northernmost (nor'THern-most), a. [(north- 
ern + -most.] Situated at the point furthest 
north. 
northern-spell (nor'THern-spel), w. A cor- 
ruption of nur-and-spell. 
northing (nor'thing), n. [Verbal n. of north, 
t'.] 1. The distance of a planet from the equa- 
tor northward; north declination. 2. In nav. 
and sure., the distance of latitude reckoned 
northward from the last point of reckoning : op- 
posed to southing. 3. Deviation toward the 
north . When a wind blows from a direction to the north- 
ward of east or west, it is said to have northing in it. 
northland (north 'land), n. and a. [< ME. 
"north-land, (. AS. northland, (. north, north, + 
land, land.] I. n. The land in the north ; the 
north. 
II. a. Of or pertaining to a land in the north. 
Northman(n6rth'inan),M.;pl..A T orMMwe(-men). 
[< ME. Northman, < AS. Northman (= OHG. 
Nordman = MHG. Nortman, Northman, Nor- 
man, G. Nordmann = Icel. Nordhmadhr (pi. 
Nordhmenn) = Dan. Normand, a Northman 
(Norwegian, etc.)), < north, north, + man, man. 
Hence Norman 1 ."] An inhabitant of the north 
that is, of Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Ice- 
land, etc.; a Scandinavian; in a restricted 
sense, an inhabitant of Norway. The Northmen 
were noted for their skill and daring on the sea, and for 
their expeditions against Great Britain and other parts 
of northern and western Europe from the eighth to the 
eleventh century. They founded permanent settlements 
in some places, as the Orkneys, Hebrides, etc., and in 
northern France, where they were called Normans. Ac- 
cording to the Icelandic sages (whose historical value is. 
however, disputed), a Northman, Leif Ericsson, visited 
the shores of Nova Scotia and New England about A. D. 
1000. 
northmost (ndrth ' most), a. snperl. [< ME. 
northmest, < AS. northmest, < north, north. + 
-mest, a double superl. suffix: see -most.'] Sit- 
uated furthest to the north; northernmost. 
Dqfoe. 
northness (north'nes), n. [< north + -ness.] 
The tendency in the end of a magnetic needle 
to point to the north. Faraday. [Rare.] 
Northumbrian (n6r-thum'bri-an). a. and . 
[< Northiimhria (see def.) + -an" The ME. adj. 
was Northnmltrisli ,( AS. Northhyntbrisc,^. North- 
In/mbre, Nortlianhymbre, the people north of the 
Humber, < north, north, + Humbre, the Hum- 
ber river.] I. n. 1. Of or pertaining to North- 
umbria or Northumberland, an old English king- 
dom which at its maximum power and extent 
