LA ROSA DEI VENTI
If you read or listen to the weather forecast here in Italy you’re quite likely to come across expressions such as: vento di libeccio (wind coming from South West) or vento di tramontana (wind coming from the North).
The reason for this is that we still use the traditional names taken from the Medieval rosa dei venti (wind rose), on which each of the four cardinal points and their four subdivisions is named after a wind. Historically, the use of la rosa dei venti (wind rose) precedes the compass, and has been a common tool for sea travelling since the times of la Repubblica Amalfitana (Amalfi’s Republic) before the Twelfth century.
The reason for this is that we still use the traditional names taken from the Medieval rosa dei venti (wind rose), on which each of the four cardinal points and their four subdivisions is named after a wind. Historically, the use of la rosa dei venti (wind rose) precedes the compass, and has been a common tool for sea travelling since the times of la Repubblica Amalfitana (Amalfi’s Republic) before the Twelfth century.
http://blogs.transparent.com/italian/la-rosa-dei-venti/
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