orient (orient)

and n. [ Let us feare lest the Sunne for ever hide himselfe, and turn his orient steps from our ingrateful Horizon, justly condemn'd to be eternally benight'd. Milton , On Def. of Humb. Remonst. Moon, that now meet'st the orient sun, now fly'st, With the fix'd stars, fix'd in their orb that flies. Milton , P. L., v. 175. The songs, the stirring air, The life re- orient out of dust. orientalism the eastern intersection of the horizon by the tropic of Cancer. - Orient hibernal, the eastern intersection of the horizon by the tropic of Capricorn. orient (o'ri-ent), v. t. [F. orienter = Sp. Pg. orientar = It. orient are, that is, to place with the long axis east and west, the apse being toward the east, and the chief entrance at the west end; or, of a corpse, to place with the feet toward the east. The coffins were of plank or stone, and were not oriented. Science, III. 469. Hence-3. To place or arrange, as a building, in any definite position with reference to the points of the compa : as, the episcopal cathedral of New York will be oriented north and south. [ oriental (ō-ri-en'tal), a. and n. tal, The Spirit flies, and in Aurora's cheeks The best of Oriental sweetne seeks. J. Beaumont, Psyche, i. 51. We may note the Positure and Position of the Corps, which among the Christians hath always been to turn the Feet to the East, with the Head to the West; that so they may be ready to meet the Lord, whom the Ancients did believe should appear in the oriental part of Heaven. Durand, quoted in Bourne's Pop. Antiq. (1777), p. 47. Some ascribing hereto the generation of gold;... conceiving the bodies to receive. some appropriate influence from his [the sun's] ascendent and oriental radiaSir T. Browne, Vulg. Err., vi. 7. 2. Eastern. Also oriental. Now morning from her orient chamber came, And her first footsteps touch'd a verdant hill. Keats, Imit. of Spenser. 3. Resembling the dawn in brilliancy, brightne , or purity purity of coloring; bright; shining; pellucid; especially, ly, as applied to pearls, of a delicate speckle texture, and clear, almost translucent, white color with subdued iridescence: opposed to occidental. If he should loue an Orient stone, it is for the proper tie or beautie thereof. Guevara, Letters (tr. by Hellowes, 1577), p. 362. These unjust and insolent positions I would not mention, were it not thereby to make the countenance of truth more orient. Hooker, Eccles. Polity, viii. 2. I would not hear of blacks, I was so light, But chose a colour orient like my mind. Middle ton, Mas singer , and Rowley , Old Law, ii. 1. Is your pearl orient , sir? B. Jonson, Volpone, i. 1. Thick with sparkling orient gems The portal shone, inimitable on earth. Milton , P. L., iii. 507. II. n. 1. The east; the part of the horizon posed to occident. 2. Of superior quality; precious; valuable; po e ing orient qualities: applied to gems as a mark of excellence: opposed to occidental, which applies to the le valuable kinds. The word oriental is also frequently applied as an epithet to the names of certain stones to which the stone so described has no relation except that of color or some other resemblance: thus, oriental emerald is not emerald, but sap phire of a greenish-yellow color; oriental topaz is not topaz, but sapphire of a yellow color, or yellow mixed with red; and so on. Oriental is also applied to several superior or prized varieties of the domestic pigeon. For of o perle, fyne, oriental , Hire white coroune was imaked al. Chaucer, Prol. to Good Women, 1. 221. Some dozen of very faire Emeraulds orient all. Hakluyť's Voyages, II. 279. If this oceanic jade be recognized as a distinct variety, the ordinary nephrite may be distinguished as "orientul jade." Encyc . Brit ., XIII. 540. 3. [ cap . or l. c .] Of, pertaining to, or characteristic of the East, or Eastern, especially Asiatic, countries; hence, exuberant; profuse; sumptuous; gorgeous; magnificent. His services were rewarded with Oriental munificence: and we believe that he received much more than Hastings IMG:content-1843.png:[graphic] IMG:content-1844.png:[blocks in formation] I know not, for he spoke not, only shower'd His oriental gifts on every one, And most on Edith. Tennyson, Aylmer's Field. 4. In astrol., rising between the fourth house and the mid-heaven: applied to the planets. Lilly, Introd. to Astrol., App., p. 344.-Oriental amethyst, cashew-nut, elemi, etc. See the nouns.Oriental-pearl e ence. See e ence. - Oriental plane tree. See plane -tree, Platan us, and chinar -tree. - Oriental region, in zoögeog., a division of the earth's surface with reference to the distribution of animals and plants, comprising all of continental Asia not included in the Pale arctic region, and the islands zoologically related thereto. - Oriental shagreen. See shagreen. - Oriental sore. Same as Aleppo ulcer (which see, under ulcer ). II. n. [ cap . or l. c.] A native or an inhabitant of some eastern part of the world; an Asiatic. orientalise, v. t. See orientalize. orientalism (ō-ri-en'tal-izm), n. [= F. orien talisme = Pg. orientalismo; as oriental + -ism.] 1. A characteristic of Eastern nations, as a mode of thought or expre ion, or a custom; also, such characteristics collectively; Eastern character or characteristics. Dragons are a sure mark of Orientalism . T. Warton, Hist. Eng. Poetry, Di . i. orientalism 2. Knowledge of Oriental languages or literature. Quarterly Rev.