Orient

East is East and West is West but the Orient sounds so much more exotic!

The word Orient came into English many centuries ago from the Latin for ‘to rise’. It was used to indicate the direction from which the sun rose and came to mean the places located in that direction.

The meaning narrowed and it is now chiefly known as a poetic word for Asia.

In the 18th century it took on the meaning ‘to place or arrange to face the east’. The meaning of this verb widened to mean ‘arrange in any direction’. From this came the noun orientation and the back formation orientate, which means the same as the original verb, orient.

Now, if you orient yourself to your surroundings, it doesn’t mean face towards the East, but rather find your bearings, or become familiar with.