Comment on How did people refer to clockwise movement before the invention of the clock?

Disregard3145@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

• red@feddit.de ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

  Sunwise, as it was based on the movement of the sun during day (in the Northern hemisphere). As watch faces were modelled after sundials, sunwise and clockwise describe the same direction.

  Turnwise is a word invented by Pratchett for a book, but it’s clearly based on sunwise. He also used widdershins in his book, which is indeed the unmodified antonym to sunwise.

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  • megasin1@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    Not just any book. The discworld series. It’s the direction the disc rotates! He has so many easy to miss spots of genius. Amongst many easy to see spots of genius

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    • Brainsploosh@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      Does the sun rotate with the disc, and faster?

      Wouldn’t sunwise and turnwise be in opposite directions otherwise?

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      • megasin1@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

        The sun rotates around the disc too one of the elephants has to cock its leg every day

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• butterypowered@feddit.uk ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

  I have found my people.

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• GreatFord@lemm.ee ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

  Deosil (sunwise) was the opposite of widdershins (against the usual). Both had a wide range of uses too, not just directionality.

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• xpinchx@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

  Was it Name of the Wind or Wise Man’s Fear? I just read both of those and I remember looking up one of the words and going down a Wikipedia rabbit hole.

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  • Mugmoor@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

    No, those words don’t appear in those books. He’s referring to Discworld by Terry Pratchett.

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    • xpinchx@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨year⁩ ago

      Well shit… those are the only two books that I read recently, maybe a similar word… I left my kindle at home today I know that keeps track of words I’ve looked up and now I’m curious

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