Bittacle

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A stand or housing on a ship, placed near the helm, that holds the compass so the helmsman can read it
2. The enclosed box on a vessel's deck that supports and shelters the compass beside the steering wheel
3. An upright cabinet aboard a ship, usually before the wheel, in which the compass is mounted and lit

Etymology: The box that holds a ship's compass on deck goes back to a Latin word meaning simply "dwelling place." "Habitaculum" was a small living space, and it reached English through Spanish or Portuguese seafaring vocabulary, where the sense narrowed from a room to a fitted cabinet. English sailors wrote the word as "bittacle," a spelling that tracks its Iberian form more closely. Over time "binnacle" became the standard spelling, though "bittacle" survives as a variant in older nautical writing.