More than one land of the rising sun
Explorations here last week of how 鈥�the Levant鈥� has made a comeback in American diplomatic parlance have prompted further researches into some cardinal points.
Let鈥檚 start with the rising of the sun.聽
It鈥檚 so fundamental as a way to mark both time and space that , from Latin-derived words meaning 鈥渢o face east,鈥� has come to mean 鈥済etting one鈥檚 bearings,鈥� metaphorically and otherwise.聽
It gives rise to one of my favorite journalistic oxymorons, 鈥淲estern oriented.鈥� A recent commentary, for instance, mentioned 鈥淲estern-oriented Russians鈥�: They get their bearings, presumably, by facing west, not east.聽
A blog at notes, 鈥淭he word 鈥榚ast鈥� is derived from the Sanskrit word 鈥榰sas鈥� meaning 鈥榙awn鈥� or 鈥榤orning.鈥�... Conversely, the word 鈥榳est鈥� comes from the word for 鈥榚vening鈥� from the Sanskrit word 鈥榓vah鈥� meaning 鈥榯o go down.鈥� 鈥澛�
In biblical language, it鈥檚 not always clear whether references to the 鈥渞ising of the sun鈥� and the going down thereof are meant to indicate time of day or points of the compass.聽
Often it鈥檚 both. For instance, a verse from the book of Isaiah (45:6) seems to split the difference, in the King James Version anyway: 鈥淭hat they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that there is none beside me.鈥�
The above-mentioned Dictionary.com piece, on how use of the terms 鈥淣ear East,鈥� 鈥�Middle East,鈥� and 鈥�Far East鈥� has evolved, also notes that these directional terms are 鈥渁ll relational鈥�; that is, they 鈥渄ictate the space鈥� around the speaker. 鈥淥ur words for geography reveal where we are.鈥�
Exactly; that鈥檚 the problem, some say. The blog , commenting on the three 鈥淓asts,鈥� observes, 鈥淎ll three terms are vague, and their Eurocentrism makes them easy to criticize. Dropping them from the language would be a no-brainer if they weren鈥檛 so widely used.鈥�
Good luck with that. Our sense of direction has congealed, you might say.
I spent my childhood in California, and as I began to grasp larger concepts of civilization, I realized that I was part of the 鈥淲est,鈥� broadly speaking, even though it lay largely to the east of me. For example, Mom and Dad would go to hear Tchaikovsky 鈥� 鈥淲estern鈥� music, surely 鈥� at the Hollywood Bowl.
But on second thought, does qualify as 鈥淲estern鈥�? As part of a musical tradition that extended at least as far east as the Urals, where he was born, and as far west as Los Angeles, yes. But Russia, sprawling to the Pacific, somehow isn鈥檛 seen as part of the global 鈥淓ast.鈥�
Dictionary.com makes a similar point: 鈥淥ddly, in linguistic terms, the world seems to stop just east of Japan. Even in China, they refer to the United States as the 鈥榃est.鈥� Though, technically, North America is 鈥榚ast鈥� of China, it is considered part of the cultural West.鈥�
Would it make a difference if Asians started referring to the cities of the US East Coast as 鈥渢he Far East鈥�?
