portolano

[ pawr-tl-ah-noh, pohr- ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

, plural por·to·la·nos, por·to·la·ni [pawr-tl-, ah, -nee, pohr-].

a descriptive atlas of the Middle Ages, giving sailing directions and providing charts showing rhumb lines and the location of ports and various coastal features.

1855–60; < Italian: shipmaster's guidebook; earlier, harbor master < Medieval Latin portulānus. See port ¹, -ule, -an

A sea-chart—probably a portolano—is mentioned as early as the account of the Crusade of St. Louis, in 1270.

April 17, 2024axolotl

[ak-suh-lot-l ]

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