What is the definition of the word "Widdershins"?

Germanic in origin (to this day the word "wider" means "against" in modern German; not to be confused with "wieder" meaning "again") the earliest example in English of the word occurs in 1513 in a translation of the "Aenid".

There are variant spellings of it, but "Widdershins" is the most frequent one that has stood the test of time. It has most frequently, though by no means exclusively, been used in Lowland Scots dialect, notably in the works of Robert Louis Stevenson, though interestingly, Dorothy L Sayers also uses it in her Lord Peter Wimsey novel, "The Nine Tailors".

In Western traditions, walking "Widdershins" is generally seen as unlucky, especially if done around a church, but in other religions and cultures, including marriage ceremonies in some forms of Judaism, it is viewed as propitious. Sometimes usage depends on whether one is in the Northern or Southern hemisphere.

The opposite of "Widdershins" (apart from "clockwise"!) is "deisul".