The cardinal points are the four senses that form a Cartesian reference system to represent the orientation in a map or in the own terrestrial surface.
The word cardinal is derived from the Latin name "thistle", which identified, in Roman cities, the street drawn from north to south and passing through the center of the city. This means that the only truly cardinal point, at least from the etymological point of view, should be the North, and, to a lesser extent, the South. That is why the expression "of cardinal importance" is used when emphasizing that importance. From the cardinal points, it is the North that identifies the direction of orientation, so it is commonly said figuratively that a person has lost his North when he is disoriented or has lost his course.
