severozápad

Severozápad is a Czech term for the northwest, a cardinal direction used in geography, cartography and everyday language. The word is formed from sever (north) and západ (west) and denotes the direction halfway between north and west. In maps and notes it is commonly abbreviated as SZ.

In geographic descriptions, severozápad describes the northwestern part of a region, country, or object. It is not an official administrative unit by itself in the Czech Republic, but the expression is widely used to indicate the northwestern area of an area or to label a location on a map. The term appears in travel writing, statistics, news reports and other descriptive texts to specify a location.

In meteorology and navigation, severozápad can refer to a wind or orientation coming from the northwest (severozápadní vítr or severozápadní směr). Forecasters may use the term to describe weather patterns or to communicate directional information in forecasts.

Etymology and related terms: severozápad is built from the words sever and západ; related compass directions include severovýchod (northeast), jihovýchod (southeast) and jihozápad (southwest). The concept and its basic usage are common across Slavic languages, with cognate forms in many languages.