portolano

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

noun

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

1. 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.

Word History and Origins

Origin of portolano¹

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

Example Sentences

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

From Project Gutenberg