northeast
Archaic term for the northeast direction, derived from the Chinese zodiac signs Ox (丑) and Tiger (寅). Used historically in contexts like onmyōdō (陰陽道) and traditional geography. In modern Japanese, 北東 (ほくとう) is the standard word.
On old maps, the northeast direction is sometimes marked as the demon gate (kimon).
"Ushitora" is an old term for the direction between the Ox and Tiger signs of the Chinese zodiac.
The northeast direction as an unlucky quarter in onmyōdō; 丑寅 is the directional term itself, while 鬼門 refers to the taboo associated with that direction.
Standard kanji spelling for the northeast direction in the traditional Chinese zodiac-based system.
Single-character spelling from the Eight Trigrams (八卦); rare and mainly encountered in classical or divinatory contexts.
Compound of 丑 (ushi, 'Ox') and 寅 (tora, 'Tiger'), the two zodiac signs that correspond to the northeast direction in the traditional Chinese zodiac compass. The reading is a straightforward combination of the kun'yomi of each character.