• 北海道ほっかいどう — Hokkaido
• 北風きたかぜ — north wind
• 北国きたぐに — northern country
• 北上ほくじょう — going north
• 敗北はいぼく — defeat

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北 is an ideogram showing two people sitting back-to-back, symbolizing turning away or opposing directions. Over time, it came to represent the direction "north," possibly because people would turn their backs to the north when facing the sun in the south.

北きたの空が暗くなってきた。
The northern sky is getting dark.

北風きたかぜが強く吹いている。
The north wind is blowing strongly.