interkardinale

Interkardinale, in English usually rendered as intercardinal directions, refers to the four compass directions that sit midway between the cardinal directions: northeast (NE), southeast (SE), southwest (SW), and northwest (NW). The term is used in geography, navigation, meteorology, and mapping to describe bearings that are not along north, east, south, or west but lie at a 45-degree angle to them. The concept arises from the circle of directions, or compass, with cardinal points at 0° (North), 90° (East), 180° (South), and 270° (West). Intercardinal directions are at 45°, 135°, 225°, and 315° respectively.

In some languages, including German and Italian, the exact form interkardinale is used; in English the preferred term is intercardinal directions or simply intercardinal. In practice, an expanded 16-point compass adds eight more directions between the intercardinal points, such as north-northeast (NNE), east-northeast (ENE) between N and NE, and so on, sometimes called secondary intercardinal directions. These assist more precise navigation and meteorological reporting. The concept should not be confused with ordinal directions or other compass subdivisions, which subdivide the circle further. Related topics include cardinal directions, the compass rose, bearings, and wind direction.