põhisuunade

Põhisuunad is a term used in geography, navigation, and urban planning to refer to the cardinal directions that provide a frame of reference for orientation. The concept encompasses the four primary directions by which most navigation and mapping systems are organized: north, east, south, and west. In Estonian usage, these directions serve as the basic reference points for compass roses, maps, and spatial descriptions.

The etymology of the term combines the root for base or origin (põhi) with suund, meaning direction. As a result, põhisuunad literally denote the principal directions that anchor directional understanding in a given area. While the four cardinal directions are core, many contexts also employ intercardinal directions such as northeast or southwest, but these are distinct from the basic põhisuunad.

In practical use, põhisuunad help determine orientation in everyday activities, from reading maps and planning routes to aligning building facades and coordinating urban layouts. They support consistent communication about location and direction, both in education and professional fields such as geography, meteorology, and civil engineering.

See also: compass rose, cardinal direction, orientation, cartography, navigation.