The terms East and West lack fixed geographic reference points

Evidence

The use of “East” and “West” to identify geographical areas is confusing and ethnocentric. “North” and “south” have universally accepted fixed reference points in the poles. “East” and “west” have no such reference points. The question is: east and west of what? It all depends on where you stand. “West” and “East” presumably originally referred to the western and eastern parts of Eurasia. From an American viewpoint, however, the Far East is actually the Far West. For most of Chinese history the West meant India, whereas “In Japan ‘the West’ usually meant China.” — Samuel P. Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the…, 1351 (#expands, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: East and West are analytical distinctions, not literal geographic categories; East and West categories have never been primarily geographical; East and West are unstable geographic labels relative to the observer — Samuel P. Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the…, 1351 (+6 more)

Broader Connections

• East and West are unstable geographic labels relative to the observer #expands (0.94) — Samuel P. Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the…, 1351
• East and West are analytical distinctions, not literal geographic categories #corroborates (0.92)
• Orientalism functioned to produce the West rather than describe the East #complicates (0.74)